Tag: Patient Engagement

  • The Caring Experience: Family Caregiver Engagement

    The Change Foundation along with the Ontario Caregiver Coalition has launched The Caring Experience, an engagement project with family caregivers across Ontario in order to learn more about their experiences, specifically related to their interactions with the health care system. Findings will be compiled into a summary report to be made publicly available and will help inform both organizations’ future work. In phase one during the winter the organisations listened to caregivers, who participated in workshops, journey mapping and more. Now in phase two (until June 2016) they seek to engage with frontline health care providers, through a series of sessions as well as a survey. To learn more and to participate, please visit their site. Relevant Links:

     

  • HQO Primary Care Patient Experience Survey

    A standard Primary Care Patient Experience Survey has been developed by Health Quality Ontario (HQO) and partners. Teams who are looking to build a new patient experience survey OR changing questions in existing surveys can use the wording in the HQO template as a start. This is not meant to replace existing patient experience surveys. The survey was designed to support existing quality improvement initiatives and Quality Improvement Plans (QIPs).  To download the tool in French and/or English, and a guide on how to implement it,  please go to the HQO website. The Primary Care Patient Experience Survey was developed by HQO in collaboration with the Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario (AFHTO), the Association of Ontario Health Centres (AOHC), the Ontario College of Family Physicians (OCFP) and the Ontario Medical Association (OMA). Patients, family physicians, nurse practitioners, and primary care teams also contributed to the development of the survey The survey will continue to evolve, so should you have any questions about its development or feedback on its current state, please feel free to contact patientexperience@hqontario.ca. 

  • Volunteers wanted for free pilot of a patient contact management system

    Is your FHT or NPLC interested in trying out – at no charge – a system to automatically call or email your patients? Up to 50 AFHTO-member teams can participate in a pilot to test this approach.  The system will allow teams to contact patients in whichever way they want for whatever reason they want. These reasons could include invitations to programs, to complete patient experience surveys, to remind patients of appointments or after-hours services, to request their email addresses, or even to wish them happy birthday! The goal of this project is to make it easier for teams to administer ongoing, consistent, patient experience surveys and otherwise engage patients in their care in meaningful ways.  This has been a long-standing priority for AFHTO members and is emerging as an increasingly important focus for the MOHLTC. AFHTO members formed a selection committee to find a vendor for this pilot. Thanks to ministry project funding, AFHTO is covering all of the vendor’s costs for the pilot sites to:

    • Integrate and implement the system with their EMR.
    • Deliver up to 500 patient contacts per team in the next year.

    Participating teams must be prepared to:

    • Spend approximately 1 full day (over several sessions) to implement the system.
    • Provide feedback for an evaluation of the system so that we can all learn from this pilot.
    • At the end of the year (or after 500 contacts, whichever comes first) choose whether or not they wish to contract with the vendor to continue this service.

    Participation is determined on a first-come first-served basis. Please see the Frequently Asked Questions for more information and eligibility requirements (log-in to members only required). Please contact Marg Leyland as soon as possible if you are interested.

  • Profile of a Patient Advisory Council

    Jan. 20, 2015- The Patient Advisory Council (PAC) at South East Toronto FHT (SETFHT) has been profiled by Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada (HIROC). It was also the subject of a well-received presentation by, among others, Kavita Mehta, SETFHT’s Executive Director and an AFHTO board member at our 2014 conference. Click here for the full article. Click here for the AFHTO 2014 Conference presentation.

  • AFHTO 2014 Conference: Theme 2 – Engaging the patient in their care

    Theme Description: Patients and caregivers are increasingly looking to be engaged and consulted in their own care. Primary care is finding innovative ways to support patient decision-making about their care and support for self-care. Presentations in this stream will include topics such as education programs for patients and their families; patient involvement in care planning; tools and coaching for patients to manage their own care; and using patient feedback to achieve a seamless patient experience. AB2 – Engaging Patients through Portals: Tools and Tales 1.       My Cancer IQ®: a new tool for engaging your patients in cancer prevention and screening This presentation will outline the evidence base, objectives, target audience and capacities of My CancerIQ® and describe how it can be leveraged by family health teams to promote patient-centred collaboration (e.g., between dietitians, nurse practitioners, physicians and health promoters) and to educate their patients, engage them in dialogues on cancer screening and prevention, and empower those with behavioural risk factors to undertake positive change. 2.       Patient Portal: Perks and Pitfalls Learn about one Family Health Team’s experience with the portal including the common physician/staff misconceptions that were initially present vs the real world experiences of physicians/staff after deployment. Through our mistakes over the first 1-2 years, learn the best way to deploy this technology and how it helps to engage patients in their care. 3.        Engaging patients in their care through a secure internet portal This presentation will demonstrate how Village Family Health Team uses a secure website and mobile app called Wellx to exchange electronic messages with patients. Using Wellx, the team saves time by sharing test results, specialist appointment details and other information with patients, without worrying about the privacy and security concerns associated with email. 4.       Toward the new paradigm of Patient Centred Care (presentation to follow) The Wise Elephant Family Health Team along with 4 other FHTs have implemented the miDASH patient portal for their patients, a new paradigm in the way FHTs can engage patients in their own care.  This presentation will discuss these tools (including how patients can ebook appointments, evisit, erefill, and eview their charts) and how they have impacted patient engagement in our teams. C2-a Using the NHS’s Experience Based Design (ebd) methodology to capture and understand your patient’s experiences and co-design solutions together. The Partnering for Quality Team will be delivering a session on Experience Based Design (ebd), a methodology developed by the NHS in the United Kingdom. During the presentation attendees will learn the theory of the methodology and understand the specific tools that can be applied in their practices to achieve successes similar to those that will be described in the presentation. C2-b Timmins Health Link: Practical Applications of Patient Engagement The main presentation will describe Patient Discovery Interview (interview tool with modifications made by presenter to be appropriate in a primary care setting, Patient Goal Coaching (Timmins Health Link team’s use of motivational interviewing techniques and client readiness assessment to effectively engage patient in care plan co-design), presentation of case studies, review of project evidence and results, strategies for continued patient engagement through primary care and sustainability of health system transformation D2-b Engaging Rural Adults Living with Chronic Conditions in Exercise (presentations to follow) In rural areas, healthcare organizations struggle to support their clients with chronic disease to get enough physical activity due to lack of local support. Engaging clients in their care is a key component of all education programs that are developed to respond to the needs of that community. This presentation will illustrate three approaches to address gaps in physical activity in rural communities. 1.     Client feedback on a prediabetes lifestyle education program for rural adults 2.     HealtheSteps: Engaging Rural Canadian Men in Chronic Disease Prevention and Management Programs 3.     Chronic Disease Rehabilitation with Rural Style E2 Patient Engagement: Progressing from Pamphlets to Partnerships (presentation to follow) The Change Foundation, an Ontario based Health Policy think tank, along with 2 of its engaged patients/family members, will highlight key evidence, strategies, and examples of successful improvement resulting from partnerships between health system providers and those that they serve. F2-a Optimizing End-of-Life Planning for Medically Complex Patients (presentation to follow) In evaluating the North York Central Health Link (NYCHL) “high user” data, they identified a lack of clarity around the timing of transition from active treatment into palliative care for patients with end-stage respiratory conditions. Studies show that most people want to die at home, but over 70% die in hospital (Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association, 2012). This pilot project optimizes end-of-life planning through standardized provider training and patient-focused, end-of-life care discussions earlier in the course of illness than otherwise would typically occur. The clearly defined, simple and sustainable clinical pathway can be easily spread among primary care providers. F2-b Telehomecare: Engaging patients with chronic disease in their care using remote monitoring technology and clinical expertise in the home The current Telehomecare Program provides COPD and Heart Failure patients with improved quality of life by motivating patients and teaching them the skills to self- manage their condition with confidence. As a result, patient confidence and self-management skills increase significantly; thereby avoiding unnecessary ER visits and inpatient hospitalizations are reduced.

  • Self Management for Chronic Pain Patients

    2011 AFHTO conference presentation PRESENTER (S): Shellie Buckley, RN FHT/ORG: Stratford FHT ABSTRACT: Self management is a fairly new, vogue term used in healthcare but does it really work for patients with chronic pain? The data collected at the Stratford Family Health Team over the past two  years shows chronic pain patients will attend six week group sessions and will benefit not only at the time but continue to demonstrate positive effects weeks and months later. Following the standardized model of the Stanford Chronic Pain Self Management Program patients are supported and guided through a six week structured program. Each week patients learn and develop skills or tools to help them be competent and successful self managers. A collection of real patient case studies will be reviewed to demonstrate the benefit of self management for the patient with chronic pain. Click here to view presentation.

  • Coaching Health Self-Management

    2011 AFHTO conference presentation PRESENTER (S): Durhane Wong-Rieger, PhD FHT/ORG: Institute for Optimizing Health Outcomes ABSTRACT: This workshop provides an introduction to Health Coaching for Patient Self-Management.  Case studies and brief demonstrations/role plays will be used. After participating in this program, participants will be able to:

    1. Define the role of self-management in promoting treatment adherence and health behaviour change
    2. Identify the knowledge and skills patients learn as self-managers
    3. Know five-stage model of health coaching and concepts that support self-management
    4. Know principles of motivational interviewing and stages of change
    5. Identify the roles of healthcare professionals in facilitating patient self- management

    Click here to view presentation.

  • Mapping the Adult Learner

    This slide presentation from the AFHTO 2010 conference outlines a unique approach to motivating and educating the adult learner. The approach focuses on increasing confidence, skills and knowledge by using tools and techniques that satisfy varying adult learning styles. PRESENTERS: Laura Briden, Alicia Atkinson, Sarah Micks FHT: Guelph Family Health Team Click here to view.

  • Managing Medications

    In 2008, the Queen’s Family Health Team began to wonder just how accurate its medication lists were in our EMR. A medical student audit conducted that summer found a lot of room for improvement, particularly for patients on multiple medications or those seeing multiple providers. Since then, Queen’s FHT has developed numerous processes and policies focused on medication safety and, specifically, on how to maintain accurate medication lists.  The project has grown to include reviewing and tracking of prescription refill processes and clarifications from pharmacies, community pharmacy outreach, resident education, ordering and stocking of medications, and medication reconciliation at the patient-level. Their approach has been comprehensive and multi-faceted – it has relied on raising awareness, focused teaching sessions with providers, patient education, data collection, and engagement of all staff, from clerical to pharmacy to physician. Follow-up audits in January and August 2010 found great improvements in the accuracy of medication lists. This slide presentation from the AFHTO 2010 conference highlights their journey to date and “lessons learned” from their approach to medication safety. PRESENTER: Karen Hall Barber ORGANIZATION: Queen’s Family Health Team Click here to view.

  • Links to FHT materials on performance measurement and evaluation

    FHT resources and tools provided to the Quality Improvement and Innovation Partnership (QIIP) are now available on the AFHTO website. Click below for QIIP materials on performance measurement and evaluation: Evaluation, Measurement and Needs Assessment The Program Evaluation Resource Guide will enable teams to assess their programs to help ensure effectiveness and success.