Summer Highlights 2022:
AFHTO Leadership Council and Meeting with the Ministry
AFHTO met with the Primary Health Care Branch on August 24 and with the AFHTO Leadership Council on September 8. Below are highlights from those meetings and updates on work that is underway.
AFHTO conference – Reconnect & Reimagine: Moving Forward Together
- AFHTO’s annual conference is fast approaching. It will be a full day event on October 12 and is preceded by the AGM, dinner, fireside chat, and a social event the evening before. We hope members can join the day before, October 11, for the informal kick-off as we gather in person for the first time since October 2019.
- If you have not registered yet, please do so here. The early bird rate is available until September 28. If you do not have your discount member code, please email info@afhto.ca.
- Although the conference is hybrid this year, not all sessions will be virtual so try to come in person if you can. It will be nice to see many of you for the first time in three years!
- Only events in the main ballroom will be available through livestreaming.
- We’d like to highlight two in-person sessions for EDs:
- There will be an informal Q&A session for EDs/Admin Leads with Fernando Tavares, Program Manager, Primary Health Care Branch, and any senior program consultants who attend. It will be on October 11 before the AGM. This will be a great chance to chat with officials and your colleagues. Note: this session will be in person only, but we will explore options on how to share any relevant information after the conference. Registration for this will open shortly so stay tuned!
- EDs/Admin Leads who are interested in leading a regional ED networking session on Wednesday, October 12, from 8:30 AM to 9:30 AM are encouraged to contact bryn.hamilton@afhto.ca to reserve space by this Thursday, September 15.
Nursing incentive update
- We know that you are getting a lot of questions from your nursing team about when they will be receiving the temporary retention incentive.
- Despite what you may have heard, no funds have been flowed to interprofessional primary care teams (FHTs, NPLCs, AHACs, CHCs) or to nurses employed by family physicians or community specialists. Any team that has already provided funding to their nursing staff did it through their unspent dollars in their budgets OR, if affiliated with an academic institution, received it as a flowthrough from their parent organization.
- As per the Ministry:
- The Ministry continues the work of getting approval to allow for the flow of the funding for this sector. We are expecting that payment will be by the end of summer. Nurses who applied to the Ministry for the incentive (these are nurses who are directly employed by family physicians or specialists) will receive their payments directly from us, not their employers. Again, late summer is the target.
NOTES:
- Funding packages are complete and only require Minister’s Office approval. The biggest delay was due to verifying that the thousands of nurses who applied for the incentive were employed by a family physician or a community specialist.
- End of summer is September 21. If timelines are adjusted again, we will let you know.
- Given the late funding, it is anticipated you will receive both payments at the same time.
- Verified by HOOPP – this is a one-time ‘bonus’ and does not impact base salary and, as a result, has no impact on employer or employee contributions/deductions.
- If members have questions, they are encouraged to consult their senior program consultant.
Compensation market review in primary and community care
- Along with nine other associations in primary and community care, AFHTO is part of the Community Health Compensation Working Group that will do a compensation market review of salaries/benefits/pension in primary and community care. We are reviewing proposals from candidates who have responded to our RFP to lead this work.
- While the scope of work will be finalised upon selection of the vendor, it is anticipated that this refresh will highlight the significant wage gaps in the sectors. This will help support a data-driven advocacy campaign on how to make pay fair and reasonable across these sectors. This is a fundamental piece of recruitment, retention, and, ultimately, healthcare delivery.
- As was done back in 2016-17 with our last market compensation work, advocacy tools for members will be developed. MPP advocacy will be important.
- A more thorough update on this work will be provided once the vendor is confirmed and work is underway.
FHT-Ministry contract update
- At our August meeting, AFHTO updated the ministry on our consultations with members and stakeholders. The ministry is expecting to receive our FHT contract recommendations at the end of this month.
- The council was joined by Dale McMurchy from McMurchy Consulting for an overview and discussion of the draft recommendations that have been co-designed by many of our members.
- The draft recommendations will be taken to the AFHTO board this week, be refined, and then submitted to the ministry for consideration. Discussion with the ministry will continue throughout the fall.
- We ask members stay tuned for possible consultation this fall.
Work underway on IHP roles and responsibilities
- Members have requested updated information on roles and responsibilities of IHPs to aid in the coordination and management of care in their teams. The last time such a document was available was in 2007 and there have been significant changes in scopes of practice since then.
- Working with our IHPs, AFHTO has completed the first draft of the guidance document, entitled Guidance to Interprofessional Healthcare Provider Team Roles and Responsibilities. To support next steps, IHPs have been invited to participate in focus group sessions to strengthen and validate the draft guidance for teams.
- We want this to be truly designed by the IHPs in teams so if you have any IHPs that would be interested in participating in the focus groups, please reach out to abisola.otepola@afhto.ca.
- Please share the invitation with your relevant networks to maximize participation.
Register now! A webinar on WSIB health and safety rebates
- WSIB is not a requirement for FHTs and NPLCs, but many teams have voluntarily enrolled in the program as a best practice to support the occupational health and safety of employees.
- To help smaller businesses recover from the pandemic (1-99 full-time employees), the WSIB is doubling the rebates through their Health and Safety Excellence Program this year – and they’re giving businesses $1,000 towards their health and safety plan.
- Join us for a webinar on Thursday, September 22, from 12 PM to 1 PM to learn more about the program’s benefits and how investing in health and safety not only keeps your employees safe but can boost your bottom line.
- Register here!
REMINDER: Please help AFHTO update its resource page!
- AFHTO is reviewing the tools and resources page on our website so that resources are up to date and relevant. We’ve asked EDs on the AFHTO Leadership Council to ask fellow EDs about tools they’d share. Most beneficial are governance, finance, and HR manuals.
- If you’re an ED, please expect to hear from your ED rep if you haven’t already. You can also send any resources to alexander.christy@afhto.ca or bryn.hamilton@afhto.ca
- We thank teams for sharing their resources with others, and it is very helpful for your peers.
As we move into the fall, we continue to thank you for the great work you all do. If there are ways we can support you, please let us know.
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