Update on Meeting with Ministry, CHOGIP Survey and OPTIMUM A and Physician Assistant Webinars

• Update on Meeting with Ministry
• CHOGIP Survey
• OPTIMUM A and Physician Assistant Webinars

Update on Meeting with Ministry

On Monday, May 8^th AFHTO met with the Ministry’s Primary Care Branch to discuss and clarify a number of issues. Below is a synopsis of our conversation.

1.      New FHT-Ministry Contract
The Ministry expects to receive feedback from the OMA on the draft FHT-MOHLTC contract by end of May. We anticipate the new contract will be released once this consultation process is complete. AFHTO provided feedback to the Ministry based on member feedback from the October 2016 Leadership Session and can confirm the following clauses are under consideration for change in the new FHT contract:

• There will be one FHT agreement regardless of Board makeup (provider, mixed, community) with appropriate schedules to address specific circumstances such as blended salary model payment for physicians, hospital governance, university involvement, etc.;
• FHTs will be required to move to skills-based Boards (e.g. financial, risk management, human resources, planning, program development, clinical skills);
• Strengthened conflict of interest provisions to ensure conflict at the governance level is managed appropriately and incorporated into Board by-laws;
• With a few exceptions, all FHTs will be required to be incorporated consistent with the Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act 2010;
• FHTs will need to develop a formal mechanism to include patient and community input into FHT planning and priorities;
• Changes to support improved collaboration in quality improvement efforts across the care team;
• FHTs will be required to submit a Quality Improvement Plan annually to Health Quality Ontario;
• The FHT will be required to participate in sub regional planning with their LHIN and deliver programs based on a community needs assessment (details about this is not known); and
• Changes to improve access including ensuring that patients are aware of stable hours of operation, making the option of email communication available to patients and ensuring that patients with urgent health conditions have the ability to receive timely access after contacting the FHT.

We will continue to keep members informed on new information pertaining to the FHT contract, and will host a joint webinar with the Ministry when the contract is released to address any questions you may have.

2.      Primary Care Capacity Assessment Framework
We understand the Primary Health Care Branch is developing a capacity assessment framework to guide the LHINs in their sub region planning for primary care. We have requested further consultation and participation in the development of the Framework, and will let our members know as more information is available. In the meantime, if you are getting requests for data from your LHINs that has left you concerned, please let your Ministry Consultant know.

3.      Expansion of Team-Based Care and Creation of New Teams
A number of requests have come in from FHTs and NPLCs to increase the number of IHPs and QIDSS on their teams. The Ministry is currently reviewing all business cases and will be making recommendations on where new team members should be approved on a case by case basis. The Ministry will also be focusing its attention on the four sub regions in the province that currently do not have an interprofessional team and will be working through a few options to support those communities (including expansion of current teams and/or creation of new teams).

As part of this investment of the creation of new teams, the Ministry will soon be sending out an Expression of Interest (EOI) to interested communities that would like to support the development of one of ten First Nations primary care teams in the province. Once we have the EOI, we will be sending that out to our members so that you can work with your communities to develop a proposal if you are interested.

4.      Quality Improvement Decision Support Specialist (QIDSS) Evaluation
A huge push for AFHTO has been to increase the number of QIDSS in the field to help support our teams with their quality improvement work. The Ministry will be conducting an evaluation of the current QIDS Program with the intent to build on lessons learned and leading approaches so that they can continue to ensure the investment is supporting the field QIDSS positions in the field. More information on that soon to come.

5.      Year 2 Funding and Compensation Roll Out
As part of the Ontario 2017 Budget commitment, interprofessional teams will now receive $145M in recruitment and retention funding over the next three years, on top of the $85M that was announced in the 2016 budget. For this fiscal year, that is $34.1M that needs to be allocated to the various interprofessional teams. AFHTO, along with AOHC and NPAO, is currently working with the Ministry to develop a roll out strategy for these funds which will hopefully roll out quicker than it did last year. More details on the roll out strategy, including compensation webinars with the Ministry, will soon be available.

CHOGIP: Invitation to Participate: Canada National Benefits Study

AFHTO has partnered with Arthur J. Gallagher to offer our AFHTO members the opportunity to participate in a national benefits benchmarking study specifically for Canadian employers.

The survey results will provide a robust set of resources to help participating organizations determine if their benefit offerings are competitive in the marketplace compared to their peers in size, industry and/or geography.

By participating in this study through AFHTO, you will receive a results report specifically of AFHTO members*. We feel this would be valuable for our membership and would like to encourage you to participate in the 2017 Canada Benefits Strategy & Benchmarking Survey.

The topics covered in the survey are benefits plans, retirement plans, wellness offerings, paid time off and premium-sharing arrangements. The majority of the survey information should be available in your organization’s employee booklet or HR policy.

Click here to receive a form to request your organization’s unique participation password.

All members who complete the survey will receive the following resources:

• 2017 Executive Summary: Overall insights, implications and recommendations
• 2017 Canadian National Report (valued at $650): Deep analysis of a full spectrum of employee benefits topics
• Customized cut of the survey specific to our membership*

If you need any assistance completing the survey, please contact Alison Muth at Alison_Muth@ajg.com at Arthur J. Gallagher. Please note that the survey will close on June 19, 2017.

*Please note we must have at least 40 respondents to provide a customized report.

OPTIMUM A (Optimizing Outcomes of Treatment-Resistant Depression in Older Adults A) Webinar

Date: June 8, 2017
Time: 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

In this webinar Dr. Peter Selby, Clinician Scientist in the Addictions Division and the Director of Medical Education at CAMH, and Dr. Benoit Mulsant, Professor of Geriatric Psychiatry and Chair of the Psychiatry Department at the University of Toronto, will present information about care for elderly patients with depression and will introduce participants to a new research project on the subject. To learn more join us for this webinar session.

Learning Objectives:

• Understanding differential depression diagnoses in elderly patients.
• Depression medication management in elderly patients.
• Diagnosis of treatment-resistant depression in elderly patients.

“Physician Assistants”: Family Health Team’s Best Kept Secret Webinar

Date: May 24, 2017
Time: 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

This webinar will provide an overview of the Physician Assistant (PA) role in Family Health Teams (FHTs) and demonstrate the value that they can bring, as part of a member of a collaborative team to improving patient care. In Ontario, there are over 40 PAs working in FHTs. Their integration has been instrumental in increasing access, reducing wait times and improving overall patient outcomes. PAs are cost-effective and enhance the overall productivity of the team. To learn more join us for this webinar session.