Category Archives: Conference

Event: Personal Health Information Goes Digital

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• Did you know that as an Albertan you now have access to your personal health record?

• Did you know access to personal health information and digital solutions could improve health care experiences and outcomes?

• Do you want to know how to become an active partner in shaping how technology will transform our health care system?

You’re invited to Partners in the Power of Information Sharing: Educate, Empower, Engage, presented by IMAGINE Citizens Collaborating for Health and the O’Brien Institute for Public Health.

This FREE day-long event is designed to inform citizens about the power of digital health, and provide engagement opportunities to shape Alberta’s rapidly expanding digital health landscape.

WHEN: October 3, 2019

WHERE: Red & White Club, Calgary

Register here 

World Patient Safety Day

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Quality and Safety Summit 2018

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The Quality and Safety Summit began this morning in Calgary. In addition to participating in walking tours and presentations, summit attendees are seeing some cool initiatives in action. Here is one that caught many people’s attention.

Patient Scholarships | Canada Health Infoway

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Are you a patient or caregiver who is passionate about helping shape health care in Canada?

As part of our commitment to amplifying the patient voice, we are pleased to offer a limited number of scholarships to patients, caregivers, and family members to attend the 2018 Infoway Partnership Conference in Montreal on November 13-14, 2018.

Click here for more information.

Calling Patient/Family Advisors

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If you are a patient/family advisor, want to attend the upcoming Quality Summit in Calgary but have not yet registered, here is a tweet you won’t want to miss.

Deadline is Approaching

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Just a reminder that the deadline to submit your abstract for this year’s Quality Summit is on April 18th, 2018 at 11:59 p.m. MT. The theme of this year’s summit is “1 + 1 = 3,” with the goal being to create synergy to transform Alberta’s health system.

Abstracts will be accepted in the following two themes:

Stream 1: Transformation through Innovation

“This is for you rebels out there! Are you trying something completely new or different in your area; going boldly where no person has gone before? This stream is for you – we want to hear your radical ideas and emerging ways of how to improve care. You might only have limited results that your idea is on the right track, but we want to hear how you are breaking new ground, how you made it happen and what you believe is possible for the future! The summit is an opportunity to seek input, inspire collaboration, and motivate action at an early stage in your project.

The definition of innovation that we are hoping to showcase is: New ideas that oppose and contradict our accepted ways of delivering health care services.”

Stream 2: Successful Quality Improvement Projects

“If you have implemented a successful quality improvement project and want to show it off, this is the category for you! We want to hear about your evidence-based improvement projects for delivering healthcare services and advancing a culture of patient and family centered care. Your journey doesn’t necessarily need to be complete – just show us what you’ve done so far and what could be possible in the future.”

Click here to find out more.

***Remember, the deadline for submissions is April 18th, 2018 at 11:59 p.m. MT***

And So It Begins

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After months of hard work and planning, the 2017 Quality & Safety Summit is underway. If you are unable to attend the event in person, you can catch the livestream beginning October 31st at 8:30 a.m. http://www.albertahealthservices.ca/news/Page13765.aspx
Here is to a great summit!

Last Day: Patient Voices Wanted

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Canada Health Infoway will be hosting the 2017 Infoway Partnership Conference: Connecting for Digital Health, on November 14-15, 2017, in Calgary. The focus of the conference will be to explore and recognize the effect that digital health is having in the lives of Canadians.

In addition to health care leaders and people in the healthcare profession, Canada Health Infoway is seeking to bring patients to the table to discuss opportunities, challenges and solutions concerning health care delivery in Canada. Click here to read about the Patient Scholarships that are available. Deadline for scholarship applications is July 5, 2017.

Feed the Elephant

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In an earlier post, readers were invited to share any ideas they had concerning potential topics for the upcoming 2017 Quality Summit. Karla W. was one person who accepted this open invitation. Below is what she wrote.

“Over the past several years of [my] experience as a patient representative/advisor, the issue of remuneration for time spent as a “volunteer” has surfaced [during] discussions at the tables. Nationally, and provincially, it varies greatly (from zero – up) how organizations acknowledge patient advisors, as well [as how] different people on the same committees are acknowledged differently. I would like to encourage a discussion on this topic.”

Why not be like Karla and “feed” the elephant?

Is the Room Getting Smaller or the Elephant Getting Bigger?

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Continuing on from an earlier post, below are some additional advisor-related topics that have been suggested for this year’s Quality Summit 2017.

  • Diversity and Healthcare – This could include such things as gender, sexual orientation, culture, ethnicity, age, disability etc.  Diversity is a topic that applies to all populations, regardless of whether one is a patient, member of the community, healthcare provider, advisor, or healthcare professional.
  • Disparity and Healthcare – Socioeconomic status, poverty, accessibility and health/well-being.
  • Volunteer Burnout – What is volunteer burnout?  What causes volunteer burnout?  How can it be prevented?
  • What is the ideal healthcare system as seen from leadership, management, frontline staff, patient/family advisors.  What are the frustrations and barriers associated with realizing this ideal?
  • What is an effective partnership for patient/family advisors and AHS staff?
  • Why does storytelling matter and how could it help in connecting with the person before the patient?  Empathy vs. apathy.
  • Drawing from patient/family advisors across Canada, what are their frustrations, hopes, dreams and lessons learned with respect to their advisor role?
  • What are some advisory opportunities and innovative ideas and programs from Alberta and beyond?
  • What does meaningful involvement mean to patient/family advisors?
    “[T]he meaningful involvement of patient and family advisors with healthcare, (where meaningful means for everyone involved – the advisors, front-line providers, research, operations, senior mgmt, etc.)”
  • “To what extent are patient and family advisors meaningfully involved with healthcare?” (where ‘meaningful = having a serious, important or useful quality or purpose’ … and reference to meaningful means for all stakeholders involved – the advisors themselves, front-line providers, research, operations, senior mgmt, etc.)”