Category: Uncategorized

Below are relevant updates and items for AFHTO members, including free resources and tools:

To: All EDs in AFHTO Membership

AFHTO is reaching out to members for assistance in developing a series of case studies to guide members through situations they may be facing. If your team has experience with any of the situations identified below and you would like to share your knowledge, please contact Bryn Hamilton about volunteering to be a case study subject.

1.  “Effectively Embedding Care Coordinators within Primary Care”: The case studies will explore teams that currently have CCAC care coordinators embedded within their teams and the success factors and principles for establishing effective working relations. MOHLTC’s Patients First proposal speaks to deploying these care coordinators in primary care. A number of teams have already done this – their experience can help other FHTs/NPLCs as well.

2.  “Unionization”: this set of case studies will aim to share the experience of FHTs that have unionized staff and offer guidance to other EDs who are facing potential unionization or negotiating their first collective agreement.

3.  “Access to Team Based Care”: Based on AFHTO’s 2-page position paper and literature review, this case study will review FHTs that have conducted significant outreach to family physicians in the community to offer access to programs for their patients – including the approach and steps taken to expand and manage capacity while balancing the quality of care delivered.

Each of these scenarios is increasingly relevant to our members, and we know that those who are facing them can learn from the examples of those who have already “been there.” If your FHT/NPLC has experience in one or more of these areas, we hope you will consider participating in the case study development. Likewise, please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions about the project.

AFHTO’s Executive Director Mentorship program launched in February 2016 and is in full swing, with over 15 mentor-mentee pairs matched so far. Developed in response to member requests, the purpose of the program is to provide peer support for any member EDs or Administrative Leads who feel they could benefit from it. This includes those who are new to the role and want help getting oriented, experienced EDs who are steering their teams through change, and others who simply feel that they could use the support and guidance of a peer.

• See an overview of the mentorship program here.
• See a checklist for mentors and mentees here.

We’re committed to supporting our mentors through training and network-building, and we make every effort to match mentors and mentees whose teams work in similar environments, taking into consideration geography, size, governance structure, academic or Francophone status, and other characteristics that reflect the diversity of our membership. The program is already starting to bear fruit, with mentors and mentees alike telling us that they have benefited from their relationships.

If you feel that you could benefit from the ED Mentorship Program, please contact Bryn Hamilton, AFHTO provincial lead for Governance & Leadership, and we will find a match for you. If you’re looking for a particular kind of support, such as guidance through a particular change or challenge – please let us know.

To Executive Directors and Admin. Leads:

AFHTO is sending this email to ensure you are aware that some of your staff may be planning to attend a rally at Queen’s Park on March 3^rd. Word is spreading to staff across the province through their various networks. This could affect your FHT/NPLC so you may need to take steps to address patient care on that day.

It is no surprise to learn that staff are joining together to organize this rally to make their case directly to politicians. No doubt you’ve been directly experiencing staff frustration and turnover, and see it escalating rapidly. You likely share this frustration yourself, as you watch the inequity continue to grow in compensation for staff working in AHACs, CHCs, FHTs and NPLCs compared to other health sectors.

AFHTO, together with our colleagues in AOHC and NPAO, continue to meet with ministry staff and political leaders to keep them focused on finding sufficient funding to retain staff in primary care. The gap is becoming particularly acute as the ministry’s Patients First proposal requires a strong foundation of primary care to succeed. There is always the possibility for some good news in 2016-17, but that’s all it is – a possibility.

In the meantime, thank you to so many members who continue to write letters, meet with MPPs and raise awareness of the negative impact this funding gap is having on the province’s ability to deliver comprehensive team-based primary care to keep Ontarians as healthy as possible.

Angie Heydon
CEO, AFHTO

To EDs, Board Chairs and Lead MD/NPs of AFHTO member organizations:

FHT and NPLC leaders identified “Accountability and contractual relationships” as the top priority topic for AFHTO’s response to the Ministry’s Patients First proposal. This was revealed through the 14 web meetings held with you, the leaders of AFHTO member organizations in each LHIN region.

To date, members have had divergent opinions on this issue so AFHTO has not taken a position on this question. But members also want to lead – can we find where there is consensus to enable the membership to speak with one voice?

With this in mind, a draft discussion paper for AFHTO members was released on Tuesday, Feb. 16. We’d like you to review and respond through an online survey and/or one of two webinars. All input received will be reviewed and considered by the AFHTO board to finalize a position at their meeting on March 2^nd.

To attend one of the webinars, please register and pick the session that fits your schedule. Webinars will be held on:

• Friday, Feb. 19, 2016, 12 noon – 1:15 p.m. EST
• Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, 3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. EST

We look forward to hearing from you and if you have any questions or concerns, please send an e-mail to saleemeh@afhto.ca.