QI in Action eBulletin # 105: Ontario Health Submission March 2021

In this Issue:

• A new tool for primary care providers: Quality Standard Placemats
• Quality Improvement Plans – Update
• A Peoples’ Panel on how race and ethnicity data should be used for health data research in Ontario
• Upcoming Webinars

Content below developed by Ontario Health

A new tool for primary care providers: Quality Standard Placemats

Quality standards outline what high-quality care looks like for conditions or processes where there are large variations in how care is delivered in Ontario. They are based on the best evidence and designed to help you know what to do to reduce gaps and variations in care – there are over 25 quality standards developed by Ontario Health, in collaboration with health care professionals, patients, and caregivers across Ontario.

Ontario Health is pleased to share a newly developed tool called the Quality Standard (QS) Placemat that is a resource for primary care practitioners. The placemat highlights key elements of care for a condition and:

• is an evidence-based, quick-reference tool that concisely summarizes key information from the quality standard
• includes links to helpful resources and tools
• can be used to facilitate patient-centered discussions

Three quality standard placemats have been developed to date:

Low Back Pain QS Placemat – summarizes content from the Low Back Pain Quality Standard, focusing on care for people 16 years of age and older with persistent or recurrent episodes of acute lower back pain. French version.

Osteoarthritis QS Placemat – summarizes content from the Osteoarthritis Quality Standard, focusing on care for adults with osteoarthritis of the knee, hip, or hand (i.e., thumb or fingers). French version.

Anxiety Disorders Quality Standard (QS) Placemat – summarizes the Anxiety Disorders Quality Standard, highlighting the key elements of diagnosis, assessment, and treatment, as well as includes links to helpful resources and tools. French version.

The placemats can also be uploaded and used within EMRs for easy access. Resources to support adding these tools into your EMR system will be added on Quorum soon, so please stay tuned for more information!

Access the quality standard and related resources at the links below:

• Quality Standards library
• Tools for Implementation (pain)—a list of tools and resources that support the implementation of quality standards related to pain and its associated symptoms, including chronic pain, low back pain, and osteoarthritis
• Anxiety Disorders and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Tools for Implementation—a list of tools and resources that support the anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder quality standards
• Hear from some of our stakeholder champions and members of the LBP or OA quality standard advisory committees:
  • Interview with Karen Clayton-Babb, Belleville NPLC
  • Suzanne Denis, Advanced Practice Physiotherapist, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
  • Interview with Dr Eugene Wai, spine surgeon, Ottawa

We would like to hear from you about how we can support you and if there are other topics you would find helpful for future QS placemats. Please email qualitystandards@ontariohealth.ca  

Upcoming Events: Webinar
As part of the release and dissemination of the quality standard, Ontario Health and Provincial Geriatrics Leadership Ontario will be co-hosting a webinar for health care providers about delirium, in alignment with World Delirium Awareness Day on March 17, 2021.

Webinar | Delirium – A New Quality Standard for an Important Health Concern| Wednesday March 17, 12–1 p.m.  
Provincial Geriatrics Leadership Ontario and Ontario Health co-host a webinar with clinical experts to share information and resources to support patients who are at risk for delirium or who are experiencing symptoms of delirium. The session will review delirium and its significance to COVID-19 infection, introduce key statements from the quality standard, and showcase related resources available to support people who are at risk for delirium or who are experiencing symptoms of delirium. Please register here to join the session.

Quality Improvement Plans – Update from OH(Q)
Last April, QIP submissions for 2020/21 were paused to allow organizations to focus on supporting their staff, health care providers, and communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The QIP Navigator remained open so that organizations that had the capacity to continue working on their submissions were able to do so. We will be closing the 2020/21 cycle in Navigator on March 24, 2021.

As we look ahead to the 2021/22 QIPs, we understand that organizations continue to be under unprecedented pressure related to the COVID-19 pandemic and that this will likely continue for the next several months. As such, we are making adjustments to the 2021/22 QIP to help ensure that organizations are able to focus their efforts on responding to urgent needs related to COVID-19. While quality improvement is of critical importance in our collective response to COVID-19, for now, the pause on the program will continue.

We will monitor the situation and will share a revised approach in the coming months, ensuring that it is responsive to circumstances in the health system and that you have sufficient time to prepare. The approach to 2021/22 will be designed to provide organizations with flexibility to reflect where they are with their quality improvement efforts given the pandemic, local needs, pressures, and goals for the recovery period. We encourage organizations to continue with their local quality improvement initiatives and we will be in touch soon.  

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us at QIP@OntarioHealth.ca if you have any questions.

A Peoples’ Panel on how race and ethnicity data should be used for health data research in Ontario
ICES is working together with the Tamarack Institute and Digital Justice Lab to lead a Peoples’ Panel on how race and ethnicity data should be used for health data research in Ontario. Through this Peoples’ Panel, ICES seeks to recognize the ways that science has perpetuated racism and understand the complexities in the use of race, ethnicity, and immigration data.

The Peoples’ Panel will involve 30-60 diverse and representative individuals who will meet weekly for 5 weeks starting on March 17, 2021. ICES is seeking regular people—no experience in health, science or policy needed. If you live in Ontario and have an interest in how race data is used, and especially if you identify as racialized individual, they invite you to express your interest in being part of the Peoples’ Panel. Participants will be compensated.

Learn more and apply

Upcoming Webinars:
OHT Improvement Measures from Health Administrative Data: Where are OHTs Starting From?
March 23, 2021 (12:00 – 1:30 pm EST)
Click here for more information and to register.

Supporting Older Persons At Home – Learning And Collaboration During The COVID-19 Pandemic And Beyond
March 25, 2021 (12-1 pm EST)
COVID-19 highlighted numerous barriers and challenges to providing integrated care for older persons living in the community. Join Provincial Geriatrics Leadership Ontario in a discussion on how to better support older persons in the community using lessons learned during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. We will discuss needs in primary care – focusing on the role of interprofessional teams – and offer some resources and tools to better support team-based care for older persons. We will also discuss how specialized geriatric service programs in your area can provide support to primary care clinicians. Click here to learn more and register.

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 #104 or other back issues here!
Questions? Comments? Contact us at improve@afhto.ca.