Ultimate Blogging Championship

Tag: Highlights

  • Over 90% of Family Health Teams belong to AFHTO

    Family Health Team membership in AFHTO surpassed the 90% mark as of in the last week of September.  171 of Ontario’s 186 FHTs have now joined. AFHTO is the voice for Family Health Teams (FHTs) in this province.

  • AFHTO-OMA survey of physicians working in FHTs (due Oct.16)

    The purpose of this AFHTO-OMA collaboration is to inform both associations on the experience of physicians working in this model, and gain insight into their needs, ideas, issues and concerns.  The results will be released as part of a joint OMA/AFHTO presentation and discussion at the AFHTO 2011 Conference on Oct. 26. FHT physicians will receive the link to the on-line survey from the Lead Physician or ED of your FHT. If you have not received this link, please send an e-mail to info@afhto.ca . Please include your name and the name of the FHT in which you practice in order to receive the link. Responses must be submitted by Sunday, October 16. Thank you for your assistance, and we hope to see you at the AFHTO conference. Sincerely, Dr. John McDonald                                                               Dr. Stewart Kennedy President                                                                               President Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario                   Ontario Medical Association Lead physician, PrimaCare FHT, Paris                               Physician, Harbourview FHT, Thunder Bay

  • South East Toronto FHT’s “Virtual Ward” recognized in Hospital News

    Aging at home the right way: Toronto Family Health Team’s Virtual Ward is the story that appears in the October 2011 issue of Hospital News. Click here to read the  Hospital News story. Click here for more background on SETFHT’s Virtual Ward.

  • CIHR Training Grant in Interdisciplinary PHC Research: applications due Oct.31

    Transdisciplinary Understanding and Training on Research– Primary Health Care — “TUTOR‐PHC” Program information and application forms for TUTOR-PHC are now available on TUTOR-PHC’s website at http://www.uwo.ca/fammed/csfm/tutor-phc/applications/applicationforms.html For more information about TUTOR-PHC, go to http://www.uwo.ca/fammed/csfm/tutor-phc/ Who should apply?

    • Graduate Students from Canadian Universities that are interested/ engaged in primary health care research regardless of their home discipline
    • Post‐doctoral fellows, policy-makers, OR clinicians* that are interested/ engaged in primary health care research

    *Clinicians can include any type of Health Professional in Primary Health Care (i.e. Physician, Nurse, Social Worker, Dietician, Occupational Therapist, etc.). Please see our website for more information. The deadline for applications is October 31, 2011 (program runs from May 2012 to April 2013).

  • Rural health care providers unite to provide optimal health services

    Wellington hospitals, Family Health Teams, Community Care Access Centres and Mental Health Services signed a collective agreement last Wednesday aimed at optimizing health and patient care in our rural communities. The local rural health partners include Groves Memorial Community Hospital, North Wellington Heath Care, Minto-Mapleton, Mount Forest and Upper Grand Family Health Teams, Waterloo Wellington Community Care Access Centre and Trellis Mental Health and Developmental Services. By entering into this agreement each partner commits to improving the overall efficiency and effectiveness of health care services through collaboration, joint planning and sharing. “We are stronger working together than we could be independently,” said Jerome Quenneville, President and CEO of the Wellington Health Care Alliance. “By working together we can potentially leverage sources of funding to improve patient services.” Shirley Borges, administrator for Minto-Mapleton Family Health Team said, “Through collaboration we are able to explore sharing of health care information systems and services. This will allow all partners to enhance the current level of health care available in our rural communities.” “This agreement will strengthen the current collaborative approach and set in motion the evolution of existing capabilities and service roles to better meet the unique rural health care needs of Centre and North Wellington. The ripple effect of success in our relationship will drive further success by others,” said Lana Palmer, Executive Director, Upper Grand Family Health Team. “The agreement between our seven organizations is just a beginning.  As part of building health care access and healthier communities, in future, we hope to work more closely with public health, community support services, social services, education providers, local citizens and our local municipalities,” said Suzanne Trivers, Executive Director of the Mount Forest Family Health Team. These local rural health partners have created a working group they call “Rural Health Care of Tomorrow”. The first order of business for the group is to work with community health and social support partners to further develop the vision of coordinated health services and work toward the physical structures that will support the vision. “We are all committed to achieving and ensuring excellence in patient care,” said Kevin Mercer, CEO of the Waterloo Wellington Community Care Access Centre. “This Memorandum of Understanding helps mark a new beginning of efforts to work together to further improve service connections between our organizations.” Fred Wagner, Executive Director, Trellis Mental Health and Developmental Services said, “Those living in rural areas have a close relationship with their local health care providers. By working together we will be able to improve upon that relationship.” Posted from the Mount Forest Confederate, Sept.15, 2011

  • Citizens’ Reference Panel calls for expansion of family health teams in Ontario

    Twenty-eight Ontarians who have looked at the inner-workings of the province’s health system recommend more collaboration, integration and accountability to help ensure the sustainability of high-quality, accessible and publicly-funded health care. One of these recommendations states, “We urge the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to accelerate the expansion of integrated family health teams throughout the province.” The report, released on June 22, 2011, was commissioned by PwC (formerly called PricewaterhouseCoopers). They invited 28 randomly-selected citizens from across the province to meet over three weekends in Toronto from April-June 2011. One male and one female panel member was selected from each of the 14 Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN) and with the age profile matching that of the population distribution of the province. This process and their discussions were facilitated by public engagement company, MASS LBP. Their recommendations can be summarized into five themes (below). Click here for links for the entire report and executive summary .

    1. Improve Accountability and Incentives. Link compensation for physicians to measurable patient outcomes and satisfaction, encourage health professionals to form interdisciplinary primary health teams, expand reporting in hospitals that measure quality and patient satisfaction.
    2. Strengthen Community Care. Requires strengthening of partnerships, mobilization of volunteers, creation of patient and community support groups, reduce cyclical funding constraints, prepare for an aging population with new resources for community services that keep people at home.
    3. Improve Access and Timeliness. Expand family health team models. Utilize nurse practitioners more widely in primary care clinics and emergency departments, and develop a centralized specialist referral system.
    4. Expedite eHealth and improve information-sharing. Communicate the importance of eHealth while addressing access and privacy issues.
    5. Step up Prevention and Promotion. Direct a share of alcohol and tobacco taxes towards health promotion. Expand nutrition and phys-ed in schools, more public education on active living, better food labeling.

  • Congratulations to 4 AFHTO members profiled in Health Quality Ontario’s 2011 Report

    Four AFHTO members are profiled in two Success Studies found in Quality Monitor 2011 Report on Ontario’s Health System, released today:

    The 2011 Report covers eight Success Studies. These four FHTs have the distinction of being the only primary care organizations that are profiled.  They join two FHTS profiled in HQO’s 2010 Report – Athens FHT (http://www.afhto.ca/news/fht-success-stories/succes-story-post/ ) and New Vision FHT (http://www.afhto.ca/news/fht-success-story-2-2/ ). This is but a sample of the excellent progress many FHTs have made in improving care for their patients. For a full copy of Quality Monitor 2011 Report on Ontario’s Health System, go to http://www.hqontario.ca/pdfs/2011_report_-_english.pdf (or for French language, go to http://www.hqontario.ca/pdfs/2011_report_-_french.pdf ).   For a summary of findings about primary care in Ontario, see pages 12-13 of the Report.

  • Credit Valley FHT to be expanded to serve local Francophone population

    TORONTO/CNW/ – The Office of the French Language Services Commissioner is pleased to report that the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care will be implementing concrete measures to ensure the development of primary French-language health care services in the Peel-Halton region. After carefully considering various potential delivery models, the Ministry has determined that the expansion of the Credit Valley Family Health Team is the best option to respond to the needs of the local Francophone population. This family health team will work in collaboration with the Centre de services de santé Peel et Halton — the organization that had initially turned to the Commissioner’s Office for help. QUOTE “This good news allows us to look toward the future with renewed confidence, knowing that Francophones in the Peel-Halton region will soon have access to health services in French,” said Commissioner François Boileau. “This positive outcome would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of our complainants and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care’s commitment to achieving results.” QUICK FACTS

    • In March 2010, the Commissioner’s Office presented an investigation report requesting concrete measures from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to address the lack of French-language health services in the Peel-Halton region.
    • As a first response to this investigation, the Ministry acknowledged that it was ultimately responsible for the provision of equivalent French-language health services; the Ministry then proceeded to modify the criteria used to select family health teams to reflect the specific situation of the Francophone community.
    • The Centre de services de santé Peel et Halton has received $125,000 from the Ministry to help with the recruitment of health professionals and help set up these new services.
    • The Credit Valley Family Health Team hopes to welcome its first Francophone patients by March 31, 2012.

    LEARN MORE Read the French Language Services Commissioner’s investigation report at www.flsc.gov.on.ca in the PUBLICATIONS section.

     

  • Ten FHTs sustain blood pressure reduction through Hypertension Management Program

    (New York, N.Y.): A ground-breaking Canadian blood pressure education program will be a powerful tool in fight to reduce stroke around the world. This morning, Dr. Sheldon Tobe, Chair of the Canadian Hypertension Education Program (CHEP) and a long-standing Heart and Stroke Foundation researcher, unveiled a new and powerful tool in the management of hypertension at the American Society of Hypertension (ASH) Scientific Meeting —The Heart&Stroke Hypertension Management Program.

    “Diagnosing high blood pressure (hypertension) and lowering it in one patient is relatively simple,” says Dr. Tobe. “But keeping the pressure down in hypertensives across the entire country has proven to be a formidable challenge for patients and healthcare systems.” To test and quantify the efficacy of the Hypertension Management Program, a three-year demonstration phase was launched in 11 primary care sites (10 family health teams and one community health centre) in communities across Ontario, including Beamsville, Brighton, Deep River, Dryden, Kitchener, Mount Forest, North Bay, Shelburne, Toronto, Vermillion Bay, and Windsor. The Hypertension Management Program consists of healthcare provider education and tools as well as patient specific tools to facilitate blood pressure management and control by providers and self-management by patients. After the initial intervention at the start of the study, the Family Health Teams continued delivering the program on their own. “More than 3,600 patients participated in the Canadian study and blood pressure fell quickly. Remarkably after three years, patients with a diagnosis of hypertension had sustained average blood pressure reductions of 6.4/3.8 mmHg,” said Dr. Tobe. The Heart&Stroke Hypertension Management Program has resulted in 41% more people in these 11 primary-care centres across Ontario keeping their high blood pressure under control. Even modest reductions in blood pressure can dramatically decrease the incidence of cardiovascular disease.

    • A reduction of 5 mm Hg in systolic in blood pressure translates into:
    • A 14% drop in stroke mortality
    • A 9% drop in coronary heart disease and
    • A 7% reduction in overall mortality
    • It has been shown that effective blood pressure control can reduce the incidence of stroke by up to 40%!

    “This study is showing us that in hypertension, a simple inexpensive education intervention can lead to the sustained achievement of blood pressure control for at least three years,” Dr. Tobe says. Dr. Mel Cescon of the New Vision Family Health Team in Kitchener says, “Our team was able to transfer and adapt this protocol to the diagnosis and early treatment of other chronic conditions such as diabetes.” The Canadian program will assist family physicians and healthcare providers in achieving those elusive, sustained, reductions in hypertension. Supported in large part by the Ontario government, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario collaborated with the Ontario College of Family Physicians, the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario and the Ontario Pharmacists’ Association to create the program. FINANCIAL BENEFITS In 2005, cardiovascular disease cost Canada more than $21 billion a year in healthcare and lost productivity. That number is expected to climb to more than $28 billion by 2020. The U.S. Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research has reported that Americans spent $29 billion for prescription cardiovascular drugs alone in 2008. “Getting hypertension under control is one way of greatly reducing the hemorrhage of taxpayers’ money,” said Dr. Tobe. “For patients in the Canadian and American healthcare systems, for care-givers and administrators alike, the implementation of the Heart&Stroke Hypertension Management Program will prove beneficial financially and in terms of public health. It is imperative that we get guideline-based programs like this into everyday primary care practice right across North America.” BEST EVIDENCE POINTS THE WAY The new protocol is guided by best practice principles. The Heart&Stroke Hypertension Management Program demonstrates that an evidence-informed inter-professional primary healthcare provider educational intervention can successfully integrate into the practice of primary care clinicians to improve the management and control of hypertension in their patients. A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE According to the World Health Organization, hypertension is a major cause of disability and is the leading risk factor for premature death, causing an estimated 7.5 million deaths per year globally. More than one third of the world’s population suffers from high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. The number of baby boomers headed for the high risk years for cardiovascular disease is expected to create unique stress on healthcare systems all over the world. “These made-in-Canada results should give healthcare professionals, healthcare economists and everyone with high blood pressure cause to rejoice,” said David Sculthorpe, CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario. Want to find out more about hypertension and global health? Visit: www.heartandstroke.ca BACKGROUND For healthcare providers, the support system includes:

    • Hypertension Flowsheet charting tool in both paper and electronic formats, with built in prompts to guide the healthcare provider during the patient’s visit and to record the patient’s progress and care plan;
    • Confidential practice reports, produced through a secure web-based data repository that enable providers to know how well their patients are doing over time and compared with other participating sites;
    • Tape measures with waist circumference risk markers.

    For patients, the self-management resources offered by healthcare providers include:

    • An education booklet
    • A log book
    • Information fact sheets
    • Consumer e-tools such as “My Heart&Stroke Blood Pressure Action Plan” and ”My Heart&Stroke Risk Assessment” – which provide confidential risk assessment, an opt-in program for email support and the ability to track/monitor blood pressure and progress.

    Contact info: Diane Hargrave Public Relations, 416-467-9954 x104 cell 416-826-5911 dhprbks@interlog.com

  • Study on interprofessional teamwork in FHTs finds link to strong leadership & EMR use

    The May 2011 edition of Canadian Family Physician reports on a study of team members in Ontario’s FHTs, by Dr. Michelle Howard and others from McMaster University. Click here to access the full report.

    Key findings are:

    • Interprofessional teamwork, by way of family health teams (FHTs), shows promise as a strategy to facilitate optimal primary health care.

    • This study aimed to understand how organizational factors influenced team climate and to determine whether there were modifiable factors that predicted a better team climate in the FHT setting.

    • Team climate is positively predicted by strong leadership, group or developmental culture, and use of electronic medical records within the FHT.

    • The lack of relationships found between most organizational factors, such as governance or mix of health professionals, and team climate suggests that interpersonal aspects of teamwork override organizational aspects, and that individuals who commit to working in this environment will engage in teamwork regardless of other factors in the environment.