Tag: members in the media

The Intelligencer published an article June 28th 2022

At each meeting, QHC board members present their “Values in Action” certificate of recognition to those who make a difference. Most recipients are QHC personnel or volunteers.

But on Tuesday at Belleville General Hospital, treasurer John Kearns presented the award to Karen Clayton-Babb, the chief nurse practitioner and director of the Belleville Nurse Practitioner-led Clinic. The same award went to Gateway Community Health Centre of Tweed, but no representative was present to receive it.

Kearns described the reality for so-called unattached patients: receiving care after giving birth, but leaving the hospital without someone to track your baby’s growth, or being a senior with multiple health conditions but no regular provider of care or someone to renew prescriptions.

Some are left with no choice but to seek care in hospital emergency departments, he said, “or worse, don’t seek care at all, leading to deteriorating health.”

The clinic and health centre, though, banded together to offer a service with a simple goal but a long name: the Hastings Prince Edward Ontario Health Team Virtual Support for Unattached Patients program.

It has since helped more than 1,282 people through 3,649 visits in six months.

“Many of these virtual visits have resulted in patients being diverted from QHC’s emergency departments, or have prevented potential hospital admissions or readmissions,” Kearns said.

“Patient flow has been a huge challenge for our hospitals, with the pandemic exacerbating these concerns,” said QHC vice-president and chief nursing officer Lina Rinaldi stated in a board document.

“We often have patients using our emergency departments for primary care concerns like ear infections or medication renewals because they have nowhere else to turn.”

Rinaldi added the two partners “are showing a real desire to help the system and to ensure people get the right care, at the right time, in the right place.”

Clinic director Karen Clayton-Babb added many of the visits were coordinated with QHC to ensure timely appointments for patients newly-released from hospital, reducing the risk of readmission.

Many patients were overdue for preventative screening and while some received abnormal results, they received referrals to specialists.

“One cannot help but wonder at what stage these diseases would have been caught, if it was not for access to the virtual clinic,” Clayton-Babb stated.

The clinic “has also received funding to provide follow up care to QHC newborns during their first two months of life,” Kearns continued. That program has yet to be established fully, but the clinic has so far accepted more than 100 “unattached” babies via QHC. Many of their relatives also have no primary-care provider and have received care through the clinic.

parents are also unattached patients and received care or immunizations from the clinic.

“Newborns are supposed to be seen by a primary care provider within 72 hours of discharge,” stated QHC’s Tracey Giles, the program director of maternal child and mental health.

Having the clinic following those babies “for their first two months of life provides peace of mind that there’s a plan in place and the newborns are getting the care they need once they leave the hospital.

“We hope there will be an opportunity to extend the care window beyond the first two months of life.”

Kearns said the program is a “prime example” of a local solution to rising needs for health care.

“We need to work together to find local solutions that have a big impact.”

News provided by Health Canada

TORONTO, June 28, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ – The Government of Canada firmly believes that everyone should have access to safe and consistent sexual and reproductive health services. To do so, we are committed to removing barriers to access that continue to exist from coast to coast to coast.

We know that in Canada, LGBTQ2 communities are often unable to access inclusive sexual and reproductive health services because of a lack of safety in health care settings and/or a lack of provider knowledge about LGBTQ2 health. Today, on behalf of the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, the Honourable Marci Ien, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, announced more than $5.1 million in funding from the Sexual and Reproductive Health Fund for projects by the Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC), the Canadian Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity (CCGSD), Egale Canada and Sherbourne Health. These nation-wide projects will help improve sexual and reproductive health services, as well as develop resources and tools to support LGBTQ2 communities in getting the care and supports they need.

The CBRC will receive $2,856,327 to work with partner organizations to foster health promotion leadership within LGBTQ2 communities; improve health care providers’ capacity to provide sexual and reproductive care to community members; and create health promotion and policy resources for community members, health care providers, and policy-makers.

The CCGSD will receive $1,090,624 to develop and deliver new educational resources and tools related to LGBTQ2 inclusive sexual health education. In five Canadian cities, this curriculum will be taught to teachers, as well as health and social service providers to increase their capacity to support LGBTQ2 youth and marginalized individuals. Through this curriculum, it will help improve access and promote greater equity in sexual and reproductive health care.

Egale Canada will receive $584,941 to develop training in intersex health for health care providers as well as peer support resources for intersex individuals and parents/guardians of intersex children. By developing these resources, this project will help providers ensure that intersex individuals receive patient-oriented care, as well as provide opportunities for mutual support and knowledge-sharing within this community.

Sherbourne Health will receive $569,443 to improve the quality of and access to sexual and reproductive health services for LGBTQ2 communities. The project will develop, pilot, and promote resources for health care providers on sexual and reproductive health options and considerations for community members.

These investments reflect our belief that no matter who you are or where you live, we will always protect reproductive rights for all individuals in Canada.

CKDR published Jun 13, 2022

Written by Mike Ebbeling

An innovative new program to provide resources and supports to individuals with addictions concerns has been established by the Dryden Regional Health Centre.

The Rapid Access Addiction Medicine Clinic is a collaboration between the hospital and St. Joseph’s Care Group in Thunder Bay and it provides a holistic approach to addictions treatment with supports from nurse practitioners, mental health therapists and physician support.

Marcel Penner is Director of Mental Health and Addictions Services at DRHC and says clients can expect a respectful, confidential space to receive help without judgement.

“Many people may not feel comfortable approaching their regular pathways of primary care, their doctor, nurse, emergency department, because people feel stigmatized. Sometimes people feel uncomfortable talking about those concerns in those spaces. So what the RAAM Clinic aims to do is provide a safe space, non-stigmatizing, supportive, wrap-around service to people who want to address their concerns for addiction.”

Penner notes addictions concerns could include alcohol, opiates, amphetamine, or other substances.

He stresses there is a need in the Dryden area for additional supports and this will help address that.

Penner says, “Services are available to anyone. They just simply have to contact our mental health agency here at the Dryden Regional Health Centre. It’s 223-6678. They can phone themselves, they can refer themselves or if they do have that kind of relationship with their doctor or nurse practitioner, they can instead have them call it in or send a letter of referral.”

He adds, “The intakes come through our mental health department and then we setup the clinic appointment. There is a bit of a process, so, even though the clinics run weekly, once a week (Monday afternoons), the idea is to try to get people connected as quickly as possible.”

The clinic operates at the Dryden Area Family Health Team building with a “No Wrong Door” approach, meaning clients can receive the supports for any substance abuse disorder, and be connected with the appropriate level of treatment based on their needs when they are ready to seek assistance.