Ultimate Blogging Championship

Tag: Measurement and Quality Improvement

  • Bits & Pieces: memo to primary care from OH and more

    Bits & Pieces: memo to primary care from OH and more

    Your Weekly News & Updates

    In This Issue  
    • Memos to primary care, on operational direction and more
    • Health ministers’ meeting in Vancouver
    • Reminder- Supporting Caregivers Supports Patients- The Critical Role of Primary Care in Preventing Caregiver Burnout, Nov. 24
    • Virtual concussion occupational therapy services for teams
    • Moving towards an integrated health data ecosystem & QIP update
    • OLTCA convention call for content
    • Nominate high performing early career family physicians
    • IPHCC & PHAC seeking participants for short videos
    • Upcoming events including Evaluating program planning using an equity framework and more

     

    Memos to primary care, on operational direction and more

    Recent updates include:

    We continue to update multiple pages on our site with resources and news:

    Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates– the original page, with news and updates. You can find links to related pages here as well.

    Health ministers’ meeting in Vancouver

    screenshot of AFHTO news release

    “Mr. Duclos … added the federal government is also prepared to make bilateral agreements with provinces and territories on issues of shared priorities, such as increased access to family health teams and mental-health services.” Full article here.

    As the provincial and territorial health ministers gather in Vancouver to meet with the federal Minister of Health, the Hon. Jean-Yves Duclos, AFHTO remains hopeful that all parties share his priority of increasing access to primary care teams and that we will see much needed funding flow to the province through the Canada Health Transfer.

    Please read AFHTO’s statement here. 

    OCO webinar flyer

     

     

    Reminder – Supporting Caregivers Supports Patients- The Critical Role of Primary Care in Preventing Caregiver Burnout, Nov. 24

    Primary care providers can play a key role in preventing burnout and enhancing caregiver well-being by initiating early interventions and connecting caregivers to support.

    Co-hosted by The Ontario Caregiver Organization and the Primary Care Collaborative, this webinar will include insights from a caregiver with lived experience, as well as examples of primary care initiatives across Ontario that are connecting caregivers to support. Register here.

     

     

    Virtual concussion occupational therapy services for teams

    The Neurology Centre of Toronto (NCT) has developed a concussion rehabilitation program that has been implemented and proven successful with an existing FHT in Ontario. The program provides patients with access to virtual concussion occupational therapy services and has been running successfully since March 2022.

    The patients in this program wouldn’t have access to this care otherwise, and the program has generated very positive feedback and results. Specifically, when surveyed after completing this program:

    • 33% of patients demonstrated an improvement in daily activity tolerance
    • 67% of patients demonstrated an improvement in their symptom scores, and
    • 83% reported satisfaction with the program.

    NCT would like to extend this service to other teams (including NPLCs and CHCs) in need of concussion rehabilitation services to support their patients. Please contact Jenni Diamond, Occupational Therapist and Program Director, to discuss the details and how it may fit within your team: jenni.diamond@numinus.com.

    Moving towards an integrated health data ecosystem & QIP update

    OLTCA convention call for content

    Taking place March 27-29, the Ontario Long Term Care Association (OLTCA) in partnership with the Ontario Retirement Communities Association (ORCA) are hosting the Together We Care 2023 Convention in person. The TWC Call for Content is now accepting abstracts. For a full list of program streams and to submit an abstract, please visit their site. Deadline November 21, 2022, at 4:00 pm EST.

    Nominate high performing early career family physicians

    Dr. Monica Aggarwal at the University of Toronto is conducting a study that will identify the key capabilities and competencies of high-performing family medicine graduates. This will help inform how learning, teaching and assessment can be improved in family medicine residency programs in Canada.

    She’s looking for nominations for high-performing early-career family physicians (based on the criteria identified here). If you have a nominee, please contact monica.aggarwal@utoronto.ca.

    IPHCC & PHAC seeking participants for short videos

    The Indigenous Primary Health Care Council is looking for both health care staff as well as general population participants for the creation of short videos.

    Created in collaboration with the Public Health Agency of Canada, the videos aim to increase knowledge about the importance of vaccination, build vaccine confidence, and address barriers to accessing vaccination services. An honorarium will be provided. Please see the flyer for more information.

    ONCA A Year Later: the 100 Most Asked Questions, Nov. 10, 2022
    Hosted by Community Legal Education Ontario, who have compiled the most frequently asked questions into a database and want to share what they have learned. Register here.

    Infection Prevention & Control in Primary Care, Nov. 23, 2022
    Hosted by Hamilton FHT and Public Health Ontario. Find out more here.

    Evaluating program planning using an equity framework, Nov. 23, 2022
    To plan for an expansion of healthcare services in newly developed neighbourhoods, a planning initiative was conducted to better understand the needs of the population. Ensuring equity of care was identified as a priority for this initiative.

    CCHL Forum webinar featuring speakers from Ontario Health, North York FHT and Queen Square FHT. Register here.

    Highlights and implications of the Ontario Science Table’s brief on primary care, Nov. 30

    On October 3, 2022, the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table (OST) released its final brief, a 3-part exploration of how primary care responded to and was affected by the pandemic, and implications for ongoing health system planning and policy. In this webinar, you will hear from a panel of primary healthcare experts who contributed to that brief, as they share some of the most significant findings and implications. Register here.

    Climate Conscious Inhaler Prescribing, Dec. 8

    Metered dose inhalers produce significant carbon emissions. Ironically, these contribute to changes to the climate that can exacerbate respiratory conditions. Simple practice changes can help disrupt this cycle and lessen the health sector’s contributions to climate change.

    Register here.

  • Bits & Pieces: preventing caregiver burnout and more

    Bits & Pieces: preventing caregiver burnout and more

    Your Weekly News & Updates

    In This Issue  
    • Supporting Caregivers Supports Patients- The Critical Role of Primary Care in Preventing Caregiver Burnout, Nov. 24
    • Climate Conscious Inhaler Prescribing, Dec. 8
    • MOH booster communications toolkit and more
    • TUTOR-PHC call for applications
    • Seeking input on how to improve person-centred osteoarthritis care
    • Upcoming events including ONCA A Year Later: the 100 Most Asked Questions and more

    Supporting Caregivers Supports Patients- The Critical Role of Primary Care in Preventing Caregiver Burnout, Nov. 24
    Primary care providers can play a key role in preventing burnout and enhancing caregiver well-being by initiating early interventions and connecting caregivers to support.

    Co-hosted by The Ontario Caregiver Organization and the Primary Care Collaborative, this webinar will include insights from a caregiver with lived experience, as well as examples of primary care initiatives across Ontario that are connecting caregivers to support. Register here.

    Climate Conscious Inhaler Prescribing, Dec. 8

    Metered dose inhalers produce significant carbon emissions. Ironically, these contribute to changes to the climate that can exacerbate respiratory conditions. Simple practice changes can help disrupt this cycle and lessen the health sector’s contributions to climate change.

    Learning outcomes:

    • Explore the carbon footprint of healthcare systems and how inhalers contribute to it
    • Examine two problems related to inhaler prescribing
    • Imagine practice change that results in immediate reduction in emissions: “high value, low carbon care”

    Register here.

    Graphic of purple vaccine vial, with another transparent vial behind it on a light blue background. below, text says

     

    MOH booster communications toolkit and more

    Recent updates include:

    We continue to update multiple pages on our site with resources and news:

    Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates– the original page, with news and updates. You can find links to related pages here as well.

     

    TUTOR-PHC call for applications

    Transdisciplinary Understanding and Training on Research – Primary Health Care (TUTOR-PHC), is a one-year, pan-Canadian interdisciplinary research capacity building program that has been training primary and integrated health care researchers, clinicians and decision-makers from family medicine, nursing, psychology, epidemiology, social work, occupational therapy, education, policy, and many other disciplines since 2003.  The deadline to apply is December 5, 2022.

    For more information, please go to the website or email the TUTOR-PHC Project Coordinator at tutor@uwo.ca.

    Seeking input on how to improve person-centred osteoarthritis care

    Per UHN:
    “Dr. Anna Gagliardi at University Health Network (UHN) is recruiting healthcare professionals for a one-time 20-minute phone interview for a research study about how to improve person-centred osteoarthritis (OA) care. During the interview, we will ask you for your perspectives, experiences, and recommendations regarding strategies to improve care for immigrant women affected by osteoarthritis.

    You are eligible for this study if you:
    — Are a family physician, nurse practitioner, or community pharmacist who works with patients with osteoarthritis
    OR
    — Are a healthcare executive, healthcare manager, or policymaker who oversees osteoarthritis services

    For more information or to express interest in participating, please contact the study coordinator, Madeline Theodorlis, by email: madeline.theodorlis@uhn.ca. Please note that information sent by email may be accessible by external parties and therefore not entirely secure. Many thanks for your consideration.”

    Hamilton FHT Green Initiative’s Cancer Screening, Nov. 2 or 10, 2022

    Led by Dr. Meghan Davis, Ontario Health’s Regional Primary Care Lead (Cancer Screening). Find out more here.

    ONCA A Year Later: the 100 Most Asked Questions, Nov. 10, 2022
    Hosted by Community Legal Education Ontario, who have compiled the most frequently asked questions into a database and want to share what they have learned. Register here.

    Highlights and implications of the Ontario Science Table’s brief on primary care, Nov. 30

    On October 3, 2022, the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table (OST) released its final brief, a 3-part exploration of how primary care responded to and was affected by the pandemic, and implications for ongoing health system planning and policy. In this webinar, you will hear from a panel of primary healthcare experts who contributed to that brief, as they share some of the most significant findings and implications. Register here.

    MyPractice: Primary Care Report: Using Data for Improvement – a focus on using the opioid prescribing indicators to drive improvements in patient care, Nov. 10, 2022
    Ontario Health is hosting a webinar for primary care providers on using the opioid prescribing indicators in the MyPractice: Primary Care report to drive improvements in patient care. This 1-credit-per-hour Group Learning program has been certified by the College of Family Physicians of Canada and the Ontario Chapter for up to 1.0 Mainpro+Ⓡ credits. The program is part of a series that has been certified for up to 4 Mainpro+ credits. Register here.

    Hospice Palliative Care Ontario’s online learning portal for person centred decision making
    The Modules are intended for Clinician Competency Training on Health Care Consent, Advance Care Planning, and Goals of Care conversations. Learners will move beyond advancing their knowledge and attitudes to develop clinical skills. Learn more here.

  • Bits & Pieces: highlights and implications of the Ontario Science Table’s brief on primary care and more

    Bits & Pieces: highlights and implications of the Ontario Science Table’s brief on primary care and more

    Your Weekly News & Updates

    In This Issue  
    • Highlights and implications of the Ontario Science Table’s brief on primary care, Nov. 30
    • Respiratory Therapist Week
    • Wawa FHT unveils new artwork on journey of Truth and Reconciliation
    • Hybrid workspace resources
    • Quality standard on medication safety recorded webinar
    • Upcoming events including Managing Influenza-like Illness this Fall and more

     

    Highlights and implications of the Ontario Science Table’s brief on primary care, Nov. 30

    On October 3, 2022, the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table (OST) released its final brief, a 3-part exploration of how primary care responded to and was affected by the pandemic, and implications for ongoing health system planning and policy. In this webinar, you will hear from a panel of primary healthcare experts who contributed to that brief, as they share some of the most significant findings and implications.

    Panelists:

    • Dr. Imaan Bayoumi
    • Dr. Danielle Martin
    • Dr. Noah Ivers
    • Dr. Jennifer Rayner

    Bring your own breakfast! Register here.

    text- The CN Tower will be lit today to celebrate RRTs in Ontario! Check it out and tag us @rtso Come out and celebrate #rtweek2022! Image to the right- CN tower lit in orange and purple

    Respiratory Therapist Week

    Thank you to all the respiratory therapists working in primary care teams, helping your patients breathe that much easier. RTSO is lighting Ontario landmarks this week in recognition. #RTWeek2022

     

     

    The artist Zoey Wood-Salomon stands to the right of her piece, a turtle with people on the circumference of its shell

     

     

    Wawa FHT unveils new artwork on journey of Truth and Reconciliation
    On September 21, 2022, at Naturally Superior Adventures, Wawa FHT celebrated the unveiling of the clinic’s new painting. Learn more here.

     

     

     

     

     

    Hybrid workspace resources

    Resources shared by the Knowledge Institute on Child and Youth Mental Health and Addictions:

    Quality standard on medication safety recorded webinar

    Ontario Health and the Ontario College of Pharmacists co-hosted a webinar, “Introduction to the Medication Safety Quality Standard and the Assurance and Improvement of Medication Safety Program” on October 19, 2022. The session introduced OH’s recently released quality standard on medication safety and described how it can be used to drive quality improvement and improve care for people in Ontario throughout the health care system. The session also discussed how the Assurance and Improvement in Medication Safety (AIMS) program supports a culture of medication safety.

    The recorded webinar can be accessed by clicking here (passcode: OHOCP2022!).

    Helpful strategies to address mental health in children, Oct. 26, 2022

    Part of OCFP’s Practising Well COP. Find out more here.

    Managing Influenza-like Illness this Fall, Oct. 28, 2022

    51st in the series “Changing the way we work” on Friday, October 28, 2022, at 7:55-9:00 am. They’ll discuss how we can prepare for an anticipated increase in COVID, influenza, and other viral illnesses in the coming months. Hosted by OCFP & UofT. Register here.

    Guidance for Clinically Appropriate Use of Virtual Care, Nov. 9, 2022
    Join Dr. David Kaplan and Dr. Risa Bordman from the Primary Care Expert Panel – Guidance for Clinically Appropriate Use of Virtual Care, as they present the third of a 3-part series on the Guidance for Clinically Appropriate Use of Virtual Care.  This webinar is part of the Primary Care and COVID-19 Support CoP Monthly Series. Register in advance.

    OPHA 2022 Fall Forum, Nov. 8-9, 2022
    The Next Chapter: Building Upon Our Capacity and Resilience in Community and Public Health. Find out more here.

    Data To Action: Making Your Data Visible and Useful, Nov. 30, 2022
    Webinar on data visualization by TechSoup Connect Ontario Chapter. Register here.

    2023/24 cQIP Information Session, Nov. 23, 2022
    Hosted by Ontario Health, this will focus on the development and planning of collaborative Quality Improvement Plans (cQIPs) for FY 2023-24. Register here.

  • QI in Action eBulletin #121: Primary Care Ontario Practice-Based Learning and Research Network (POPLAR)

    QI in Action eBulletin #121: Primary Care Ontario Practice-Based Learning and Research Network (POPLAR)

    In this Issue:

    • What is POPLAR and How to Join
    • Examining the Work Done by Interprofessional Healthcare Providers
    • Pan-Canadian Study on Outpatient Interventions for Mild to Moderate COVID-19
    • CareCanvas: A New Tool to Support Practice Improvement
    • Upcoming Events

     

    What is POPLAR and How to Join
    Content below developed by POPLAR

    The Primary Care Ontario Practice-based Learning and Research Network (POPLAR) is an initiative of Ontario’s six University Departments/Sections of Family Medicine and the Alliance for Healthier Communities. POPLAR works with clinicians, researchers, and policy makers, providing information on the vital work primary care does, while supporting practices in delivering optimal care across Ontario.

    POPLAR securely collects and de-identifies electronic medical record (EMR) data. Currently, over 1,000 primary care providers are contributing EMR data for over 1.5 million patients to the POPLAR database. The time and effort it takes to safely and securely contribute is minimal. All you need do is fill out a consent form and a brief survey; POPLAR staff will coordinate data extraction at your practice, with all safeguards in place.

    If you are interested in registering, or if you would like to find out more information about POPLAR, please visit www.poplarnetwork.ca or contact info@poplarnetwork.ca.

    Collectively, primary care’s voice can be heard by providing safe and secure access to real-world data; this is possible with your help!  

    Examining the Work Done by Interprofessional Healthcare Providers in Primary Care Teams
    Content below developed by AFHTO & POPLAR

    Interprofessional Healthcare Providers (IHPs) are key members of interprofessional teams.  Disciplines include nursing, social work, clinical pharmacy, dietetics, chiropody and more. IHPs run programs that include, amongst others, diabetes education, mental health supports, and smoking cessation. However, the impact of patient encounters by IHPs and through IHP-led programs on health outcomes at a larger scale is challenging to capture.  

    Billing data are often used to measure and monitor services to patients provided by physicians on a provincial scale. Since IHPs do not bill OHIP, these data are of limited value for examining their work. AFHTO has been working on finding ways to show the value of interprofessional healthcare providers for many years and the standardized, cleaned, and curated provincial-level EMR data for analytics available through POPLAR provides an avenue to do this work.

    Currently, AFHTO is working with POPLAR on a project that involves developing methods to determine which encounters involved IHPs from which discipline, and what types of encounters these were. Larger scale information on IHP work can then be used to correlate patient outcomes and IHP activity. Knowing more about what IHPs do and their impact on patient care and outcomes is a key aspect of planning for team-based care across Ontario.

    To learn more about this project, visit us at the AFHTO Conference during Concurrent Session A: The Value of IHPs In Team-Based Primary Care: Large Scale Measurement and Effects on Outcomes.

    POPLAR to Help Lead Pan-Canadian Study of Outpatient Interventions for Mild to Moderate COVID-19

    Content below developed by CanTreatCOVID Team & POPLAR

    CanTreatCOVID Canadian Adaptive Platform Trial of Treatments for COVID in Community Settings To the left is a graphic of stylised molecule with pills at the center

    While public health measures and vaccines have reduced the impact of COVID-19, most scientists predict that new variants will continue to emerge, and that the virus will become endemic. The Canadian Adaptive Platform Trial of Treatments for COVID in Community Settings (CanTreatCOVID) spans 6 provinces across Canada and aims to identify effective and affordable out-patient medications for COVID-19 so that they can be made readily available in community settings, including for those at a higher risk for hospitalization and death.

    Currently, the evidence supporting existing medications is weak and provincial guidelines are complex, making decision-making by health care providers, provincial decision-makers, public health leaders, and patients extremely difficult. Adaptive platform trials (APTs) are designed to concurrently compare multiple interventions and allow the inclusion, exclusion, and removal of treatment arms over time-based on a decision algorithm. This makes APTs uniquely suited to studying medications for this novel and dynamic virus.

    During the COVID-19 pandemic, APTs have been crucial in identifying what does and does not work in the treatment of COVID-19 among in-patients, and CanTreatCOVID hopes to replicate this success at the community level. The trial is open to Canadian residents aged 50 years and older, or between the ages of 18 and 49 with 1 or more chronic high-risk medical condition or immunosuppression. Eligible patients must also be within the first 5 days of experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19 and test positive for the condition.

    In Ontario, building on work done in the past 10+ years, POPLAR will be supporting CanTreatCOVID’s multi-faceted recruitment strategy through prospective recruitment of patients using EMR data from its primary care research and learning networks.

    Recruitment of patients is set to launch in late 2022. To find out how you and your patients can participate, follow the project through their webpage and newsletter, or on Twitter using #CanTreatCOVID.

    CareCanvas: A New Tool to Support Practice Improvement

    Content below developed by the University of Toronto Department of Family and Community Medicine & POPLAR

    The University of Toronto Department of Family and Community Medicine and the POPLAR network are launching a new tool to support practice improvement. CareCanvas is an interactive web-based dashboard that summarizes clinical information from your practice EMR to make it easier to care for your patients. Three types of dashboards are available: one for physicians, one for clinics, and one for Ontario Health Teams.

    CareCanvas summarizes more than 15 quality of care measures including information on diabetes, hypertension, prescribing, and immunizations. You can see trends in your practice over time and can compare your practice to your peers. For some measures, you can see differences in care by age, gender, and neighbourhood income. Click here to view the dashboard.

    CareCanvas makes it easier for you to catch up on chronic disease and preventative care. Physicians can download a list of at-risk patients who would benefit from follow-up.

    CareCanvas is private, secure, and available at no cost. Physicians will be able to use their OneID account to sign-in. Data will be updated approximately every 6 months.

    To access CareCanvas, physicians need to use Telus Practice Solutions, Accuro, or Oscar and contribute their data to one of the seven Practice Based Research Networks that make up the POPLAR network.

    Starting in November, CareCanvas will be available to existing UTOPIAN contributors, with plans to expand the program to all of POPLAR in early 2023.  There is no limit to the number of physicians that can sign up and the value of CareCanvas will grow as more physicians participate and contribute data to POPLAR.

     

    Upcoming Events

    POPLAR Webinar Series: EDIIA in Research
    Equitably improving primary health care requires research and practice-based learning that are thoroughly grounded in the principles of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Indigeneity, and Accessibility (EDIIA). POPLAR, Ontario’s provincial primary healthcare Practice-Based Learning and Research Network has the vision to advance equitable primary healthcare delivery and health outcomes for everyone in Ontario, and is hosting the following webinars for anyone who wants to learn more about building these principles into their work:

     
    Part 3: Embedding Equity in Leadership and Teams- Measuring EDIIA
    Wednesday, September 21, 2022, 12-1 pm | Dr. Nicole Kaniki, University of Toronto
    Learn more and register here.

    Part 4: EDIIA and Data – Building Capacity
    Wednesday, October 19, 2022, 12-1 pm | Dr. Andrew Pinto, Upstream Labs
    Learn more and register here.

    NPAO 2022 Annual Conference
    Thursday, September 22 to Friday September 23, 2022
    This year’s theme is The NP Experience: Pushing Boundaries Towards Common Goals. Find out more here.

    HSPN OHT Webinar: Leadership Survey Results
    Tuesday, September 27, 2022, 12-1:30 pm
    This webinar will provide new findings from the HSPN Organizing for Ontario Health Teams’ Survey comparing and contrasting current state with results from the same surveys undertaken in 2020 and 2021. Register here.

    OMD Digital Health and Virtual Care Conference
    Thursday, September 29 to Friday, September 30, 2022
    Learn how to take advantage of innovative technologies to realize more of their benefits and integrate them with your EMR workflows. Find out more here.
     
    AFHTO 2022 Conference
    Wednesday, October 12, 2022
    Join your peers from across Ontario and beyond as we reconnect and reimagine, moving forward together. Members get more than 50% off registration. Register here.

     

    In Case You Missed It: Check out eBulletin #120 or other back issues here!
    Questions? Comments? Contact us at improve@afhto.ca.

  • Bits & Pieces: federal funding for LGBTQ2 health services at Sherbourne and more

    Bits & Pieces: federal funding for LGBTQ2 health services at Sherbourne and more

    Your Weekly News & Updates

    In This Issue  
    • Health Canada funding sexual and reproductive health services for LGBTQ2 Communities at Sherbourne
    • More on mental wellness supports for frontline workers
    • Buddy Up: men’s suicide prevention using friendship and peer support
    • Perkopolis- summer & insurance discounts
    • The impact of physical activity on mental health outcomes during COVID and more
    • Reminder about upcoming changes to Infectious Disease Emergency Leave provisions
    • Primary Care Quality Improvement Hub on Quorum
    • Upcoming events including telementoring in occupational medicine and more

    Health Canada funding sexual and reproductive health services for LGBTQ2 Communities at Sherbourne

    Today the federal government announced funding to improve the quality of and access to sexual and reproductive health services for LGBTQ2 communities at Sherbourne Health and other organizations. Read the news release here.

    As we come to the end of Pride Month, we can recognize for many in these communities, heteronormativity is institutionalized within health care. As such, it’s good to continue learning how to provide an inclusive environment for patients. There are many resources including Rainbow Health Ontario.

    Also available from our own archives and teams:

    More on mental wellness supports for frontline workers

    Per Dr. Sylvain Roy, OPA:

    “OPA began partnering with Ontario Health & MOH in January to deliver treatment to all frontline workers (defined relatively broadly to include physicians, paramedics, nurses, PSWs), etc. in Ontario. There are a number of service offerings and referral pathways.

    Persons identifying as frontline workers can self-refer to one of the five mental health hospitals (e.g. CAMH, the Royal…) where they will be matched to a social worker or psychotherapist for up to 6 sessions of 1-1 therapy. If the patient is deemed to require more sessions or may be best served by a psychologist/PA by the hospitals, the frontline worker patient may be referred to an OPA psychologist for 8 (up to 12 sessions) of therapy covered by MOH.  

    Frontline workers can self-refer on the hospital website e.g. https://www.theroyal.ca/covid-frontline-wellness or https://redcapsurveys.camh.ca/redcap/surveys/?s=JK4XK83AYC

    Primary Care Clinicians will be able to refer frontline worker patients directly to OPA psychologists using the same method as before or from within their EMRs. We are now wrapping up the digital integration work between OCEAN (the primary care e-referral platform) to Strata Health (psychologists e-referral platform) that will enable direct primary care clinician referrals to psychologists for the frontline workers programs and more.  Also, CMHA is offering free training to organizations, and Project Echo provides free mental health-focused peer-to-peer support for frontline workers.”

    Additionally, don’t forget OH has released the Mental Wellness Supports for Health Care Workers due to COVID-19 Digital Toolkit.

    Buddy Up: men’s suicide prevention using friendship and peer support

    Men have a suicide rate 3 times higher than women. Buddy Up is a communications campaign focused on male friendship to prevent suicide, run by the Centre for Suicide prevention, part of CMHA. Find out more here.

    Screenshot of discounts inlcuding Canada Wonderland

     

    Perkopolis- summer & insurance discounts

    AFHTO members are eligible to sign up for free access to over 5000 perks through Perkopolis, including discounts on summer activities, products, and home and auto insurance quotes.

    EDs, if your team doesn’t have access yet, please email info@ahto.ca.

     

     

     

     

    The impact of physical activity on mental health outcomes during COVID and more

    Recent updates include:

    We continue to update several pages on our site with resources and news:

    Reminder about upcoming changes to Infectious Disease Emergency Leave provisions

    Courtesy of Maria McDonald, McDonald HR Law, here is an alert reminding you about upcoming changes to the Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (IDEL) Provisions of the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”), including the end to paid and deemed leave.

    Primary Care Quality Improvement Hub on Quorum

    The Ontario Health Primary Care Quality Team invites you to join the Primary Care Quality Improvement Hub on Quorum. The hub provides links to tools, resources, and webinars that can support quality improvement in your practice. Find out more here.

    Telementoring in occupational medicine for Ontario primary health-care providers, April- July 2022

    Project ECHO OEM sessions are held via videoconference each Friday from April 22 to July 15, 2022. Registration is free and ongoing throughout the cycle. Learn more here.

    New Horizons: Navigating towards the future of family medicine, May – September 2022
    Speaker series hosted by Dr. Danielle Martin, Chair of the University of Toronto Department of Family and Community Medicine. Find out more here.

    NPAO 2022 Annual Conference, Sep. 22-23, 2022

    This years’ Conference theme is The NP Experience: Pushing Boundaries Towards Common Goals. Find out more here.

    Data To Action: Making Your Data Visible and Useful, Sep. 28, 2022
    Hosted by TechSoup Connect’s Ontario chapter. Register here.

  • Bits & Pieces: Ontario Fall Prevention Collaborative webinar and more

    Bits & Pieces: Ontario Fall Prevention Collaborative webinar and more

    Your Weekly News & Updates

    In This Issue  
    • Ontario Fall Prevention Collaborative webinar June 23
    • Please fill in this quick vaccine survey
    • Member renewal deadline June 30
    • Free workplace mental health program for health care settings
    • Interim guidance on monkeypox vaccination, COVaxON training, and more
    • Seeking physician input for IMproving performance in Primary Care Teams (IMPaCT) survey
    • Reminder- interview on the diagnosis and management of concussion in adolescents
    • Upcoming events including Advancing equity in cancer screening for gender-diverse clients and more

    Ontario Fall Prevention Collaborative webinar June 23

    The Ontario Fall Prevention Collaborative is a diverse group of health and social service practitioners and clinicians from across Ontario who come together to share information, analyze trends, and respond collectively to the need for change and innovation in fall prevention among older adults.

    In this webinar, we will hear about the work of the Collaborative as it pertains to identified priorities around fall indicators and falls risk screening and assessment and how we can better align our efforts across the province. Find out more here.

    Please fill in this quick vaccine survey

    Discussions are just starting on planning for vaccination for the under 5-year-old age group (when/if approved), which will rely very heavily on primary care and pediatricians. To better understand the current state and to start the planning process, please take a moment and fill in this very quick vaccine survey so we can ensure primary care is supported in this next phase of vaccination: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/May2022VaccineSurvey. Deadline extended to June 8.

    Member renewal deadline June 30
    Thank you to most of the teams who have renewed their membership already. If you haven’t sent in your renewal fee and form, the deadline to do so is June 30. After this date, access to member benefits and resources including updates, website and webinars will be removed. If you haven’t received a confirmation email from us, please email info@afhto.ca. 

    Free workplace mental health program for health care settings

    Your Health Space logo

    CMHA has launched Your Health Space, a free mental health program designed to support health care organizations in addressing burnout and promoting psychological health and safety in the workplace. Your Health Space offers training for Health Care Workers, Leaders, and Support Staff through self-directed modules and live workshops, the latter of which can be tailored to your organization’s unique needs.

    If you are an organizational leader and interested, please visit the website or email yourhealthspace@ontario.cmha.ca. Registration is now open. The Your Health Space team also invites you to attend a virtual information and Q&A session discussing the program on Tuesday, June 14th, Wednesday, June 15th, Tuesday, July 12th, or Thursday, July 14th.

    Interim guidance on monkeypox vaccination, COVaxON training, and more

    Recent updates include:

    We continue to update several pages on our site with resources and news:

    Seeking physician input for IMproving performance in Primary Care Teams (IMPaCT) survey

    Trillium Health Partners is seeking input from primary care physicians working in Ontario to understand what influences how physicians interact with data about their patients and their practice.
     
    You can find the survey and additional details here. You will be offered a $50 gift card in recognition for your time.
     
    If you have any questions, please contact, Zahava Rosenberg-Yunger (zahava.rosenberg-yunger@thp.ca).

    Reminder- interview on the diagnosis and management of concussion in adolescents

    Graduate students are researching the perspectives of community-based primary care providers in Toronto on the diagnosis and management of concussion in adolescents. They’re interested in connecting with a few family physicians, pediatricians, and nurse practitioners working in Toronto for a half-hour interview to participate in their capstone project.

    If you’re interested in participating or have any questions, please send them an email at concussion.trp@utoronto.ca. Deadline June 3.

    Clearing the Air on Asthma and COPD: When Undertesting Leads to Overdiagnosis, June 8, 2022
    What are the barriers to pulmonary function testing? And how might clinicians and patients be supported to avoid over-diagnosis and over-treatment? They’ll discuss these questions and more on June’s Choosing Wisely Talks. Register here.

    Spirometry Testing for Diagnosing Asthma and COPD in Primary Care – The Why and the How, June 16, 2022
    The goal of Choosing Wisely’s Let’s Clear the Air campaign is to avoid unnecessary treatment and misdiagnosis that can occur without a proper breathing test. To help, the Lung Health Foundation is hosting sessions to explore the why and the how of spirometry testing for the diagnosis of asthma and COPD in primary care. Register here.

    Advancing equity in cancer screening for gender-diverse clients June 17, 2022

    New, gender-affirming cancer screening guidelines have been developed to support the health and wellbeing of Transgender and Non-Binary clients. Register here.

    Palliative Care in Practice, June 16 & 17, 2022
    2-Day in-person CPD event for NPs, MDs, PAs hosted by Queen’s Health Sciences. Find out more here.

    BounceBack: Back-to-the-office guide and tips to manage stress and anxiety, June 28 & 29, 2022
    Presented with the Canadian Mental Health Association. You’ll hear about coping strategies to help you better manage life’s stresses. Register for EN (June 28) and FR (June 29).

  • Help shape final recommendations for the next FHT contract! Sign up for a discussion group

    This email was sent to EDs/Admin Leads, lead clinicians and board chairs of AFHTO member teams.

    Dear triad members,
     
    Since last fall, AFHTO has been working with members and consultant Dale McMurchy to develop recommendations for the next FHT contract. The current contract expires in March 2023, and AFHTO will be providing recommended changes to the Ministry of Health this fall on behalf of our membership. Our input can influence the next stage in the evolution of interprofessional primary care.
     
    As part of the process, we have consulted with our FHT Contract Working Group (seven EDs in various models) since the beginning. We’ve held multiple consultations where we heard from well over 100 members, and we presented draft recommendations to our board in March. We have also received feedback from the ministry and kept the OMA involved in the conversations.
     
    Next, we’d like you to consider joining one of the three working groups we’re forming based on the top areas for advancement that have been identified and where further discussion is needed:
     
    Accountability and Performance Discussion Group

    • The goal is to work towards aligning current reporting and performance measures, standardizing expectations related to performance and accountability, and to have initial discussions towards laying the groundwork for developing a provincial primary care performance framework.
    • Key considerations will be the nature and timing of reporting, applicability, and level of evidence of performance measures, as well as the feasibility, effort, and resources needed.

     
    FHT/Physician Affiliation Discussion Group

    • The goal is to clarify and strengthen FHT/physician partnerships (with affiliated and possibly unaffiliated physicians) by exploring requirements for a shared agreement/MOU.
    • Key considerations for the agreement/MOU template content will include guiding principles and goals; expectations related to roles, responsibilities and outcomes; team collaboration and shared care; and use of resources.

     
    Governance Discussion Group

    • The goal is to revisit the current governance models from a lens of ensuring the boards have a diversity of skills, experience and backgrounds representative of the community served, and are responsive to health equity, community/patient needs, and patient experience.
    • Key considerations will include the minimum standards for the Governance and Compliance attestation; how Boards are held accountable for performing their fiduciary, strategic, and generative duties; the requirement for board education and training; and any additional considerations for blended salary and academic models.

     
    We would like each working group to have 8-10 members, with a mix of EDs, physicians, and board members. We also hope to include 1-2 QIDSS on the Accountability and Performance Discussion Group.
     
    These groups will review the materials developed to date and help us finalise our recommendations to the ministry. We anticipate 3 to 4 meetings for each discussion group between June and September, with the first meeting planned for early June. Timing and frequency will be determined during the first meeting, and we will work to minimize the burden.
     
    We would like to emphasise that the recommendations we develop will be submitted to and discussed with the ministry, who will make the final decisions.
     
    If you’re interested in joining one discussion group, please complete this quick survey by Friday, May 13.
     
    Any questions, please contact Bryn Hamilton at bryn.hamilton@afhto.ca.
     
    Thank you for your consideration, and we look forward to these discussions.
     
    Sincerely,
    AFHTO

     

  • QI in Action eBulletin #115: Role of Primary Care in Vaccine Distribution, Funding Opportunities, Partner Updates

    QI in Action eBulletin #115: Role of Primary Care in Vaccine Distribution, Funding Opportunities, Partner Updates

    In this Issue:

    • Understanding the Role of Primary Care in Vaccine Distribution
    • Clinical Systems Renewal Funding
    • Primary Care Data Reports for Ontario Health Teams (OHTs)
    • Updates from eHealth Centre of Excellence
    • NEW Online Smoking Cessation Program
    • Upcoming Webinars

     

    New Research Project! We want to hear from you!
    AFHTO has partnered with Dr. Rachelle Ashcroft on a study focused on understanding how and in what ways primary care contributes to vaccine distribution, challenges experienced by primary care in the transition of vaccine distribution, as well as generating recommendations about primary care’s ongoing and future roles in vaccine distribution, including COVID-19 boosters.

    This study will be in the format of focus groups with EDs, MDs, NPs, nurses, QIDSS and IHPs.

    If you are interested in participating, please complete this poll for your availability, by February 16, 2022.

    For any questions, please connect with Sandeep Gill: sandeep.gill@afhto.ca.

    Clinical Systems Renewal Funding
    The Ministry of Health (MOH), through Ontario Health, has approved up to $3.96M in dedicated funding each year in FY2021-22 and FY2022-23 for Ontario Health Teams (OHTs) and In Development (OHT) Teams to support investments that reduce the fragmentation of clinical systems with a focus on Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) and Hospital Information Systems (HIS). Funding is intended for innovative projects that lay a foundation to further streamline healthcare systems resulting in better integrated care outcomes. For more information, please click here.

    Primary Care Data Reports for Ontario Health Teams (OHTs)
    The Primary Care Data Working Group has produced OHT-specific Primary Care Data Reports (PCDR). The reports use standard health administrative measures in primary care in conjunction with measures for attachment to a primary care provider to deliver a standardized document for Ontario Health Teams (OHTs). These reports are intended to provide a deeper understanding of the attributed population of each OHT from a primary care lens. To learn more about the reports, please click here.

    Updates from the eHealth Centre of Excellence: New and upcoming digital health tools for primary care

    The eHealth Centre of Excellence (eCE) has been developing several different decision support tools that can be integrated into primary care EMRs to facilitate access to best practice evidence at the point of care:

    • Development of the Long COVID tool jointly with Ontario Health is nearing completion for Telus PS Suite, with the Oscar version currently in development
    • Development for the Osteoporosis toolkit in Oscar is complete and the Accuro version is now in development; this tool is already available for the PS Suite
    • The Falls Prevention EMR tool developed jointly with the Centre for Effective Practice (CEP) has finished development and should be available soon for PS Suite
    • Work has begun with Surrey Place on the new “Health Check” tool, which aims to help with documenting a comprehensive health assessment for adults with Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities

    These tools will be made available for download directly from the community portal. If you have any questions and would like to see a specific tool developed, please reach out to: EMRtools@ehealthce.ca.

    The eCE Automates team continues to provide virtual assistants or “bots” that help to create more efficient workflows for clinicians and their staff:

    • The COVID-19 vaccination bot is continuing to help clinicians with their COVID-19 vaccine documentation, supporting 3rd and 4th doses within the PS Suite EMR, with development underway to bring this bot to Accuro
    • The new Bernie Lab ordering bot is currently in development with a planned release in the coming months – stay tuned!
    • They are working on a new automation project named ASAPP (Automated Solutions Assisting Priority Populations), which will build on the existing bot processes by running additional advanced algorithms to identify high risk patients

    Feel free to get in touch here if you are interested in learning more.

    Ongoing exploration is occurring through the HEAL (Healthcare Experience and Advancement Lab) initiative to help understand and prioritize future automations within both clinical and administrative spaces. If you are interested in providing input as to what tasks you would like to see automated, consider signing up for HEAL and they will be in touch.

    CAMH STOP on the Net

     

    NEW Online Smoking Cessation Program: STOP on the Net

    The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) has launched an online smoking cessation program called STOP on the Net, available to adults in Ontario interested in quitting tobacco cigarette smoking. Eligible participants can receive a free 8-week NRT kit containing nicotine patches and gum/lozenges mailed directly to their address!

    Learn more about STOP on the Net by reading the flyer and visiting www.stoponthenet.com.

     

     

    Upcoming Webinars:
    OMD Educates Webinar: Targeting Patient Populations in Primary Care – A Practical Approach
    February 23, 2022
    Learning Objectives:

    • The importance of identifying a specific patient population and how it relates to your practice (Examples: Chronic Disease, Smoking, Diabetes Management, Mental Health, COVID-19 Vaccination Status, etc.).
    • Which digital tools and external reports are available to aid in identifying a specific population (Examples: MyPractice Reports, SARS, Insights4Care (i4C) Dashboard, Searches, EMR specific tools, etc.).
    • Practical tips on how to find and use these tools in Accuro® EMR, PS Suite EMR and OSCAR McMaster (OSCAR PRO).

    This session will include a panel discussion and Q&A followed by virtual breakout room workshops for Accuro EMR, PS Suite EMR and OSCAR McMaster (OSCAR PRO) users that will give you a better understanding of the tools and how to integrate them into clinic workflow

    Presented by Dr. Anil Maheshwari, Dr. Lee Donohue, and Dr. Vineet Nair, OMD Physician Peer Leaders with support from OMD Practice Enhancement Consultants.

    Register here

    MyPractice: Primary Care Report: Using Data for Improvement, February 28, 2022
    Ontario Health is hosting a webinar for primary care providers on using the antibiotic prescribing indicators in the MyPractice: Primary Care report to drive improvements in patient care. This is the second of an ongoing accredited series that will focus on using data from the MyPractice: Primary Care report for quality improvement.
    Register here

    Segmenting your OHT population: Stories from the Field (Part III), February 22, 2022
    Hosted by HSPN
    Registration: Click here

    Supporting caregiver well-being within Ontario Health Teams: Building caregiver resilience and reducing the risk of caregiver burnout, March 2, 2022
    Hosted by Ontario Caregiver Organization
    Registration: Click here

     

    In Case You Missed It: Check out eBulletin #114 or other back issues here!
    Questions? Comments? Contact us at improve@afhto.ca.

     

  • Bits & Pieces: Foundations of Indigenous Cultural Safety and more

    Bits & Pieces: Foundations of Indigenous Cultural Safety and more

    Your Weekly News & Updates

    In This Issue  
    • Foundations of Indigenous Cultural Safety course
    • February 11 is 211 Day
    • Our New Research Project
    • Reminder- moderate-severe depression, anxiety, OCD, and opioid use disorder in primary care
    • Vaccine inventory update and more
    • 2022/23 collaborative quality improvement plan (cQIP) update
    • Upcoming events including CMOH Town Hall and more

     

    Foundations of Indigenous Cultural Safety course

    The Indigenous Primary Health Care Council (IPHCC) has introduced Anishinaabe Mino’ayaawin: People in Good Health. This Indigenous cultural safety program will consist of several online courses for individuals working in health-based settings. Participants will learn to adopt and practice culturally safe strategies when providing care to Indigenous clients and patients. The first course, Foundations of Indigenous Cultural Safety, is an introductory course that is targeted to any individual working in health care – including any front-line staff, practitioners, volunteers, and students.

    This course will take users approximately three hours to complete. There is currently no cost to participate. Find out more here.

    If you haven’t yet done so, we encourage your team to make a commitment to learn and take action by reflecting and starting your own journey towards Truth and Reconciliation and this course is a good first step.

    February 11 is 211 Day

    You can help remind people the 211 service is available to connect them to programs and services in their community.

    211 is free, confidential, and available in 150+ languages. Community Navigators answer calls 24/7 and are trained to ask the right questions to fully understand an individual’s situation and find the right information, programs, or services for them.

    Promotional materials are available here.

    Our new research project

    AFHTO has partnered with Dr. Rachelle Ashcroft, on a study focused on understanding how and in what ways primary care contributes to vaccine distribution, challenges experienced by primary care in the transition to vaccine distribution, as well as generating recommendations about primary care’s ongoing and future roles in vaccine distribution, including COVID-19 boosters.

    This study will be in the format of focus groups with EDs, MDs, nurses, QIDSS and IHPs. Please share this survey with these team members to express interest to participate and to provide your availability for scheduling. Please note, each team member can fill out this survey individually.

    Please complete this survey by Friday, February 11, 2022. Please complete this survey by Friday February 11, 2022.

    For any questions, please connect with Sandeep Gill: sandeep.gill@afhto.ca.

    Reminder- moderate-severe depression, anxiety, OCD, and opioid use disorder in primary care

    AFHTO is supporting the OMA in collectively identifying 2-3 key priorities of mutual interest to strengthen primary care’s capacity to deliver mental health and addiction care and strengthen primary care’s ability to deliver supports to address the needs of people living with moderate-severe depression, anxiety, OCD, and people with opioid use problems.

    To support this work, we ask that Executive Directors/Administrative Leads of teams please fill out this quick survey. Please complete this survey by Friday, February 4, 2022.

    Vaccine inventory update and more

    Recent updates include:

    We continue to update several pages on our site with resources and news:

    2022/23 collaborative quality improvement plan (cQIP) update

    Ontario Health sent out a memo regarding their expectations on cQIPs on Jan. 28:
    “While we’ve undertaken to coordinate and simplify the production of your quality plans, we recognize that some teams will simply not have the current capacity available to complete all the prescribed cQIP elements…As a result, we are committing to flexibility in the form and timing of your cQIP submission.” You can read the full memo for details- EN and FR.

    CMOH Town Hall – Keeping children safe during COVID-19, Feb. 3, 2022

    Join representatives from the Chief Medical Officer of Health’s office, including Dr. Kieran Moore, Public Health Ontario, and the Presidents of the OCFP and the OMA. Register here.

    Responding to the Omicron surge – Part 2, Feb. 4, 2022
    38th in the series ‘Changing the way we work’ for OCFP’s COVID-19 CoP for Family Physicians. Register here.

    Primary Care and COVID-19 Support CoP, Feb. 9, 2022
    With a focus on COVID@Home monitoring and Post COVID-19 Clinical Guidance for Primary Care. Hosted by Ontario Health. Register here.

    The Reality of Virtual Care: Learning From the Pandemic, Mar. 1, 2022
    Ontario Health is relaunching Quality and Patient Safety Rounds (formerly Quality Rounds Ontario) to connect the quality community across Ontario. Register here.

    National Newcomer Navigation Network (N4) conference, Mar. 1-3, 2022
    The theme is The Past is Practice: intersectoral lessons learned from the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and systemic racism. It’ll be held virtually and will be free of charge. Register here.

  • QI in Action eBulletin #114: Quality & Knowledge Translation Materials 2021 Recap and COVID-19 Vaccination Digital Tools

    QI in Action eBulletin #114: Quality & Knowledge Translation Materials 2021 Recap and COVID-19 Vaccination Digital Tools

    In this Issue:

    • Quality Improvement & Knowledge Translation Materials – 2021 Recap
    • Updated Omicron Guidance
    • Ontario Health e-Reports
    • Supporting EMR Documentation of COVID-19 vaccinations
    • TELUS PSS Toolbar – Assisting in Reconciling Vaccinations
    • Upcoming Webinars

    quality & knowledge translation

     

    Quality and Knowledge Translation screenshot

    Within the AFHTO member portal, members can find the Quality and Knowledge Translation section.  

    Under the Quality Improvement Tools and Resources section, members can find COVID-19 tools to help support EMR workflows for COVID-19 vaccination patient population identification and documentation.

    Additionally, QI resources ranging from standardized D2D queries to member initiatives can be found for teams to adapt and implement within their teams.

    Throughout the year, AFHTO has been a part of multiple research initiatives which wouldn’t be possible without you! Check out the recent research publications and presentations on this page.

    Quality and Knowledge Translation webinar screenshot

    2021 has been a year with many challenges, which teams have responded to with their flexibility and resilience. To share the great work of teams, updates and supports, AFHTO collaborated with many partner organizations to organize webinars for teams. These webinars have been archived in this library within this section for your reference.

    As we plan the webinar schedule for 2022, if you have any suggestions for webinar topics, please email improve@afhto.ca.

    Updated Omicron Guidance
    The COVID-19 Omicron Case, Contact and Outbreak Management Interim Guidance has been updated. This will be available on the Ministry’s website in French and English shortly.

    Ontario Health e-Reports
    As we move into the push of COVID-19 third doses, it will be critical to reconcile the patients with a 3rd booster shot to create a list of those without one. As of November 15th OH eReports have included patients that have received their third dose. There is also a new additional OH eReport which includes the full vaccination history of all rostered patients whose vaccination status is on record. All toolkits on the OntarioMD website have also been updated to work with this new report.

    Supporting EMR Documentation of COVID-19 Vaccinations
    The eCE Automates team at the eHealth Centre of Excellence has launched a new process for the Bernie bot that will help primary care clinicians to document their patients’ COVID-19 vaccinations seamlessly and efficiently within their electronic medical records (EMRs). eCE are offering this virtual assistant at no cost to you or your team. Contact them to learn more.

    TELUS PSS Toolbar – Assisting in Reconciling Vaccinations
    The HRM COVID Immunization Maker toolbar allows you to reconcile your patient’s COVID-19 immunization history in the TELUS PS Suite EMR with vaccination reports received via the Ontario Health Report Manager with one click of the mouse.

    The content can be installed into your PS Suite instance as a custom form and will integrate into your records window using a downloadable reminder.

    By ensuring that patient records contain the correct number of COVID-19 vaccines, you can find those patients who are still not fully vaccinated, as well as those who are eligible and best suited for third shots
    To find out more visit this link.

    Illustration of a group of health professionals holding patients up

    Thank you for all your hard work this year, and our very best wishes for this season. We want to continue to capture your team’s hard work. With Omicron set to become the dominant strain this week, we want to capture how many teams have pivoted their operations for the next two weeks to support the province’s request that health system partners prioritize vaccination efforts, either within their own teams or working in the public health or hospital clinics. To share your team’s story, please fill out this survey before midnight today, December 16th.

    Upcoming Webinars:

    The latest on Omicron and what it means for you and your practice
    Friday, December 17th at 8:00-9:30 am
    Dr. Peter Juni, head of Ontario’s Science Advisory Table, will be providing an important update on Omicron and what it means for you, your practice, and our communities. You will also hear from Dr. Sacha Bhatia, Vice President at Ontario Health, about the health system response and what primary care is being asked to prioritize. Finally, Dr. Shane Tepper will discuss organizing to support vaccination and other services in the Peel community.

    Please register here

    Diabetes Care: Tools And Resources To Support Mental Health Needs
    Thursday January 13, 2022, 12:30–1:30 pm
    Ontario Health is hosting a webinar for endocrinologists, primary care providers, and diabetes educators on screening for mental health needs among people with diabetes, and resources available to support them. This is the first of an ongoing series that will highlight Ontario Health’s three diabetes quality standards.  

    Please register here.

    Quality Rounds: The Reality of Virtual Care: Lessons from The Pandemic
    January 28th, 2022, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
    Over the last two years of the pandemic, the popularity and usage of virtual care has increased dramatically. Join us as we hear from patients and providers on the enablers and barriers to delivering and using virtual care during the pandemic, as well as exploring the future opportunities of virtual care in Ontario.

    If you are interested in learning more, please contact Courtney Paxton at Courtney.Paxton@ontariohealth.ca.

    Webinar Series: MyPractice Primary Care Report: Using Data For Improvement
    Please join Ontario Health in this quality improvement webinar series as we learn about the MyPractice: Primary Care Report, a confidential report that includes personalized practice level data, along with suggestions to support you in improving care for your patients. This 1-credit-per-hour Group Learning program has been certified by the College of Family Physicians of Canada and the Ontario Chapter for up to 1.0 Mainpro+Ⓡ credits. The program is part of a series that has been certified for up to 4 Mainpro+ credits.

    • Session: A focus on using the antibiotic prescribing indicators – January 24, 2022; 12:00-1:00 p.m. Register here.
    • Session: A focus on using the cancer screening indicators – February 28, 2022; 12:00-1:00 p.m. Register here

     

    In Case You Missed It: Check out eBulletin #113 or other back issues here!
    Questions? Comments? Contact us at improve@afhto.ca.