Member news: what the 2017 Ontario budget means for members and more

AFHTO News

• AFHTO 2017 Conference call for abstracts: less than one week to submit your abstract. Your insight & experience are needed now more than ever.

• Overview of 2017 Ontario budget: what it really means for AFHTO members and the healthcare system. You can also read our preliminary post here.

• Administration CoP Lead Needed: The IHP Communities of Practice are a member-driven initiative, led by dedicated IHP volunteers from teams across the province and supported by AFHTO. Contact info@afhto.ca for further details.

• Patient priorities survey: now completed by over 200 patients but some of your patients may still welcome the chance to make their voices heard. Aussi disponible en Français! For more information about what’s in the survey and why, check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

Ministry News

• Patients First – latest updates available here, including a recording of the last webinar and healthcare highlights from the 2017 budget.

Evidence of Value

• Metabolic syndrome may be reversed through team-based lifestyle intervention program: according to three-year study funded by Metabolic Syndrome Canada

Resources, Reports and Requests for Input

• Tools developed as part developed as part of Knowledge Translation in Primary Care Initiative:

o  Guide to Managing Mental Health and  Addictions-Related Risks and Functional Impairments in Primary Care

o  Management of Chronic Non-Cancer Pain Tool

• Calls for abstracts:

o  EMR Every Step Conference, Sep. 28. Deadline May 19

o  Health Quality Transformation 2017, Oct. 24. Deadline May 29.

• Health Quality Ontario (HQO):

o  Implementing Choosing Wisely Canada (CWC) Recommendations in Ontario to Improve Quality of Care: report highlights those reducing unnecessary care, including North York FHT

• 18 Month Well-Baby Visit Planner for parents & guardians: developed by machealth to help them research possible concerns for their 18 Month Visit, and allow for them to effectively plan for their well-baby visit ahead of time.

o  Improved user experience on how HQO reports health system performance indicators for the primary care, long-term care and home care sectors.

• Unnecessary Care in Canada: similar to the HQO report, CWC partnered with the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) to estimate the degree of unnecessary, tests and procedures across Canada for 8 selected campaign recommendations.

• Seeking participants for interviews on preventive care in FHTs: University of Guelph researchers would like to interview IHPs regarding current services. A letter of information and the questions will be emailed to you before the interview. Oral consent will be obtained at the time of the interview, which will take about 20-30 minutes. Interviews may be by Skype, phone or in person. Please contact Amanda Lenneard-Shulman at alennear@uoguelph.ca, Deborah Bennett at Dbenne01@uoguelph.ca if you have any questions.

• HealtheSteps: healthy living program for those at risk or diagnosed with a chronic disease, using specific lifestyle prescriptions and strategies through one-on-one coaching with in-person or virtual coach.

Conferences and Events

• “Physician Assistants”: FHT’s Best Kept Secret, May 24, 2017: webinar co-hosted by AFHTO and the Canadian Association of Physician Assistants

•  Biennial Body Image & Self-Esteem Conference, May 11 & 12, 2017: hosted by the National Eating Disorder Information Centre (NEDIC)

• QIDSS KTE on program planning, June 13, 2017: registration now open. Travel support is available if needed.

• Primary Health Care Action Group RD Research Day, May 16, 2017: free interactive workshop on malnutrition and outcomes

• Family Health Team Mental Health Networking & Education Event 2017, May 25 & 26, 2017: post-conference with Dr. Gabor Maté on Saturday, May 27^th.

• Trillium Primary Health Care Research Day, May 31, 2017: featuring panel with policy, research, clinical and patient representation on using EMR data for quality care and research and skill based workshops.