In collaboration with the Alliance for Healthier Communities
In this Issue:
- Toolkits – Choosing Wisely Canada
- AFHTO Resources as You Plan Ahead
- Provider Experience during COVID-19 – Dr. Catherine Donnelly
- Health Equity – Public Health Ontario
- Upcoming Events
These are unprecedented times. COVID-19 is an era of resource scarcity and deciding which method of care delivery is best can be challenging. In response, and per Ministry directive, we have seen many teams transition to virtual care (mostly telephone) while being available and accessible when in-person care is required. Health care systems and providers are rapidly learning and changing in response to ongoing COVID-19 developments. As we wrap up this year and think of 2021, we have collaborated with Choosing Wisely Canada to provide you with a set of resources that can help shape your new year.
Toolkits:
- The Cold Standard:
- A revised toolkit for Using Antibiotics Wisely in the Era of COVID-19 and Virtual Care
- A webinar recording to learn more about this can be found here
- A recent article on Using Antibiotics Wisely and The Cold Standard toolkit written by Drs. Jerome Leis and Allan Grill was published in The BMJ. The article can be found here
- Drowsy without Feeling Lousy:
- A toolkit for reducing inappropriate use of benzodiazepines and sedative-hypnotics among older adults in primary care
- BYE-BYE, PPI:
- A toolkit for deprescribing proton pump inhibitors in EMR-enabled primary care settings
- Understand the Gland:
- A toolkit for appropriate ordering practices of free thyroid hormone testing
Now is the Time to Choose Wisely: Advancing Quality Improvement in Primary Care
January 27, 2020 (12-1 pm EDT)
Engaging primary care providers in quality improvement can play an important role in improving practice, enhancing patient experiences, and reducing unnecessary tests and treatments. This is particularly relevant now, as the pandemic has further emphasized the importance of resource stewardship given the urgent care needs and constraints related to COVID-19.
In this webinar, Dr. Kimberly Wintemute, Primary Co-Lead for Choosing Wisely Canada, and Dr. Peter Kuling, Family Physician at The Ottawa Hospital Academic FHT, provide insights on how to advance resource stewardship and implementation efforts in primary care using Choosing Wisely Canada recommendations and resources.
The webinar will:
- Describe Choosing Wisely Canada as it relates to primary care
- Identify ways to implement Choosing Wisely Canada recommendations in primary care
- Review tools and resources to support implementation of Choosing Wisely Canada recommendations in primary care
AFHTO Resources as You Plan Ahead
- COVID-19 Member Initiatives
- AFHTO recognizes that our members are doing fantastic work on the frontlines attending to patient needs and adjusting to the COVID-19 pandemic. To connect our teams and showcase the initiatives made by our them, we’ve created an interactive platform for our members to browse the initiatives made by their fellow members. Of particular interest may be the flu shot initiatives for you, as the province starts planning for the roll out of the COVID-19 vaccine. If you want to share an initiative or innovation, please email improve@afhto.ca.
- Past eBulletins:
A survey of interprofessional health care providers in Family Health Teams during the COVID-19 pandemic
We are now nine months since the initial restrictions of COVID-19 and we are interested in hearing about your experiences working in Family Health Teams during this time. IHPs are invited to participate in a brief web-based survey to understand the evolving experiences of interprofessional health care providers in Family Health Teams in Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Click on the link here to complete the web-based survey!
This research is being led by Drs. Catherine Donnelly (Associate Professor, Queen’s University) and Jordan Miller (Assistant Professor, Queen’s University). If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Donnelly by email at catherine.donnelly@queensu.ca.
COVID-19 and Health Equity
Health Equity and COVID-19 Website:
- Social determinants of health (SDOH), such as gender, socioeconomic position, race/ethnicity, occupation, Indigeneity, homelessness, and incarceration, are factors that potentially increase risk and severity of COVID-19 infection.
- Incorporating SDOH into risk considerations and assessments is crucial for supporting an equitable COVID-19 response.
Take the health equity impact assessment course to understand how to measure the impact of SDOH in your community and learn how to use the tool.
Learn more from the webinar: Introduction to race, income, and language data collection, hosted by PHO.
Upcoming Events:
Virtual Learning Exchange in Virtual Primary Care
The virtual learning exchange will be delivered in three 90-minute webinars and will focus on the following identified priority topics within the overarching theme of virtual primary care:
- Enhancing Equity and Access (January 29, 2021, 1:30-3:00pm ET)
- Patient and Family Centred Care (March 5, 2021, 1:30-3:00pm ET)
To find out more information please click here.
Choosing Wisely Canada’s 2021 National Meeting (May 12-13, 2021)
- Choosing Wisely Canada in collaboration with the Canadian Medical Association will be hosting a two-day virtual event on May 12 & 13, 2021. Please save the dates! More details about the meeting can be found here
- Choosing Wisely Canada is now accepting abstract submissions for the National Meeting. Please click here for more details and to submit your abstract
Interested in sharing your teams’ initiatives in a future webinar? Email Sandeep Gill – Sandeep.gill@afhto.ca to learn more about the AFHTO KTE Webinar Schedule!
In Case You Missed It: Check out eBulletin #101 or other back issues here!
Questions? Comments? Contact us at improve@afhto.ca.