Your Weekly News & Updates
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We may be working differently, but we never stopped working
As part of our ongoing efforts to promote primary care stepping up during the pandemic, we have partnered with OCFP and SGFP on their latest campaign to your availability in your communities. Here’s the information sheet, which partners have already started sharing on social media. Please share widely with your own patients and communities.
We are also collecting your flu vaccine success stories as well as any fall COVID Wave 2 initiatives your teams are doing so please share those (with pictures if you have them) so we can use them in our advocacy work with the government. #PrimaryCareAlwaysThere
Celebrating Nurse Practitioner Week
This week, we’d like to recognize the important work of NPs in primary care teams. No matter the team, whether it be FHTs, NPLCs, CHCs or other, nurse practitioners are truly invaluable in providing comprehensive care to Ontarians. Thank you to our NP team members!
Designing integrated care and indicators for older persons’ health services
The Provincial Geriatrics Leadership Office has recently provided two important updates:
- Designing Integrated Care for Older Adults Living with Complex and Chronic Health Needs: A Scoping Review– new report identifying design elements relevant to health system/program design of services for older adults.
- Indicators for Integrated Older Persons’ Care in Ontario Initiative – launch of an initiative that will bring together older persons, caregivers, health professionals, researchers and policy makers to create a provincial performance measurement framework, indicators and data collection tools relevant to integrated health care for older persons living with complex and chronic health and social care needs. They invite participation from interested older persons, caregivers, and experienced health professionals, researchers, and policy makers to assist them in this work.
QSC patient advisor needed
Involving patients as partners on our Quality Steering Committee (QSC) is integral to advance best practice and optimize performance measurement capacity across team based primary care and ensuring we meet the needs of patients, caregivers, and their families.
We are seeking individuals who can see beyond their personal experience and share insights around quality improvement for team-based primary care. If you have a patient that you believe would be interested, please read here.
2020 Ontario Budget overview
On Thursday, Nov. 5 the PC government released their 2020 Ontario Budget entitled “Ontario’s Action Plan: Protect, Support, Recover”.
Investments in health mainly centred on the Long-Term Care and hospital sectors and focused mainly on strengthening the Ontario healthcare system’s pandemic response. Here is a brief prepared by AFHTO on the budget and the announcements and investments being committed.
Unfortunately, there were no announcements made to support primary care, team-based primary care or any additional supports to mental health and addictions beyond what was already announced.
We will continue to work with our partners and advocating around the importance of primary care in the pandemic response and the integral role the sector plays in supporting the most vulnerable populations.
Updated primary care guidance and more
Updates recently released include:
- Primary Care Providers in a Community Setting guidance – updated Nov. 9.
- Testing of Asymptomatic Persons in Pharmacies guidance – on the Ministry’s website.
- Labour, Delivery and Newborn Care guidance – updated and on the government of Ontario’s website.
- COVID-19 management in schools guidance- updated and on the government of Ontario’s website.
- Child Care Re-Opening guidance- updated and on the government of Ontario’s website.
- Before and After School Programs Kindergarten – Grade 6 guidance- updated and on the government of Ontario’s website.
- As part of Keeping Ontarians Safe: Preparing for Future Waves of COVID-19, local networks of Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) expertise are being developed from across the health system which will work to enhance IPAC practices in community based, congregate living settings. Through a new, province-wide network, congregate living settings will be able to access IPAC expertise through local IPAC Hubs. More information on this initiative is available on the Ministry’s website.
- Maternal Neo-Natal COVID-19 Pregnancy Care guideline– Ontario Provincial Council for Maternal and Child Health
- MyFluShot.ca– locator and booking service available for free this flu season
We continue to update several pages on our site with resources and news:
- Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates– the original page, with news and Ministry situation reports (please note that the Ministry Situation Reports on COVID-19 are posted daily so review them to better understand the provincial response)
- COVID-19 assessment centres in Ontario
- COVID-19 information for Patients, Caregivers and the Public
- Infection control resources and tools for primary care
- H+K Memos and Insight Notes on Government Press Releases
- Management and operations, human resources and COVID-19
- Mental health and wellness during COVID-19
- Providing Comprehensive Care During COVID-19
- Resources for Re-opening – NEW
- Virtual Care, Digital Health and COVID-19
Diabetes Awareness Month
November is Diabetes Awareness Month, and Wounds Canada has organised a national social media campaign to #EndDiabetes and #PreventAmputations. Teams can get engaged by use pre-made posts created by Wounds Canada or create your own using the hashtags provided. A campaign activation kit, social media content, and infographics can be seen here. You could also send a jpeg of your logo to katie.bassett@woundscanada.ca to be included on their website and in other communications.
Governance Master Class: Advancing Diversity and Inclusion, Nov. 12, 2020
Miller Thomson Health Industry Group is holding a Special Edition of their Health Industry Directors Series. It’s also free! Find out more here.
COVID-19 Community of Practice for Ontario Family Physicians, Nov. 13, 2020
The eleventh in the series on “Supporting patients with COVID-19, evolving guidance, fatigue and more”. Register here.
Diabetes Care and Management for Ontario, Nov. 12, 2020
This HeathcareRounds virtual event will be a discussion with leaders devoted to the health and care of those living with diabetes to discuss next steps and action items.
Find out more here.
COVID-19 Preparedness and Management in Primary Care, Nov. 13, 2020
Public Health Ontario (PHO) is holding a webinar to introduce primary care stakeholders to the new PHO Checklist: COVID-19: Infection Prevention and Control Assessment for Primary Care Facilities. Register here.
Cultural Safety and Indigenous Partnership, Nov. 27, 2020
Join the first webinar of this Virtual Learning Exchange in Primary Care series held by the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement. Learn more here.
Race, Racism, And COVID-19: The Institute For Pandemics Inaugural Lecture, Nov. 24, 2020
This panel will explore evidence and examine the implications for using policy and other strategies to dismantle structural racism.
Learn more here.
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