Category Archives: Initiatives

In the Twittersphere 

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The following @Pts4Chg tweet has generated some good conversation and idea generation in the Twittersphere and beyond.

As one individual tweeted, “Problem needs a systems approach. A great opportunity for AHS innovation lab.”

If you have not read the article referred to in the tweet, you may wish to do so. (Thanks, Sandi, for bringing this news story to our attention.)

Do Buildings Have Rights?

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If you have been following the assisted dying discussion that is happening in Canada, you know that some patients have been denied medically assisted dying. The reason for this was not because the individuals failed to meet the necessary legal requirements, but because the hospitals/care facilities in which they found themselves would not provide the services to carry out the patients’ wishes.

In a recent article, André Picard argues that hospitals have no right to refuse a patient assisted dying. As he poignantly states:

It is reasonable for individual physicians and nurses to declare a conscientious objection and not participate in assisted death. But a hospital or nursing home has no such right. Publicly funded institutions cannot arbitrarily decide what services they will provide, nor should they be able to shunt dying patients around like sacks of rice.

Click here to read the full article.

Updates on Family Presence Work

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Hello Pts4Chg Community!

Over the last four months the materials for patients and families as partners and advisors have been refined a wee bit and are also now translated into French. Our small ‘collation of the willing’ (volunteer citizens, patient and family advisors and CFHI) also thought it important to also create a survey to help improve the materials upon use. I know that many of you provided feedback already (which I still have) and some of that has made it into the current version. Much of it has not though, as we needed to find a way to capture input that would likely also come in nationally. So please complete the two short surveys if you have time, so that your impressions on the info can be included when next edits are made, likely well into 2017.

If you are active on Twitter, here are some suggested hashtags for the overall Better Together campaign too, that this is part of, if you are tweeting this info out.

  • #MoreThanAVisitor
  • #Cdnhealth
  • #shoulder2shoulder
  • #familypresence

These two documents are designed to support the movement for Family Presence in healthcare.

1. The first document, Partner Tips, is intended to be used by patients and families at the point of care (e.g. at the bedside, in an office or clinic).

2. The second document, Conversation Tips, is intended to be a resource for patients and families in conversations with healthcare providers, or organizations, or communities.

Please feel free to download, copy, distribute and use these documents. You will need Adobe Reader on your device. You are welcome to adapt them to meet your local team’s needs.

These tips sheets are also available in French: http://www.fcass-cfhi.ca/WhatWeDo/better-together/resources

Want to have your say and Be part of the pilot for these documents!?

The volunteers with ‘IMAGINE CITIZENS Collaborating for Health’ would appreciate your feedback and comments about these two documents. Please click these links to complete the two surveys about each document:

1. “Partner” Tips Survey and
2. “Conversation” Tips Survey.

Comments received will be reviewed by IMAGINE CITIZENS’ volunteers so that any significant edits can be incorporated. New versions will be available periodically, every six months or so, through the partner organizations.

Thank you for your help!

Troy Stooke
volunteer
IMAGINE: Citizens Collaborating for Health & Member of Pts4Chg community

Did You Miss It?

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transformathon
The National Health Service in England hosted The People’s Transformation on Monday, November 28th. If you were unable to attend the event or missed some sessions, all is not lost. Recordings from the Transformathon will be accessible via the People’s Transformathon web page. They are sure to be worth watching, even if you attended the session live.

Patient First?

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patient-x-art
“Patient first” is a term that is often used in the health-care sector. However, are we first and foremost patients? Is that how we see ourselves?

According to Dr. Jordan Asher, he sees his patients differently. To him, he sees them as people first. “[I]n order for you to have a better health status, which includes healthcare, I need to think about you as a human being…We don’t look at people as diabetics; we look at them as people that have a bunch of life issues that happen to have diabetes.” How does this philosophy influence the manner in which Dr. Asher works with his patients? Click here to find out.

Ask a Question

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Did you know that more than 100,000 Canadians are unintentionally harmed during hospital stays in 2014-2015? Unfortunately, some of these incidents result in permanent damage or even death. To help increase patient safety, the Canadian Patient Safety Institute has initiated a campaign called the “Questions Save Lives Campaign.” What question would you ask your doctor to make your health care safer?
asklistentalk

Click here to find out more about the campaign and how you can get involved.

Would You Pay For Quality Care?

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Imagine if doctors were paid for quality of care rather than given a fee for service. How would this change the care provided to patients? What effect would this have on patient experience and patient satisfaction? What impact would this type of physician compensation have on the healthcare system in terms of resources used, expenses and overall costs? Alberta is about to find out.

Alberta doctors voted 74 per cent in favour of a set of amendments to the existing 2011-18 master agreement that will change elements of patient care and how doctors are paid.

The new deal will introduce a compensation model for some primary-care doctors aimed at rewarding time and quality of care given to patients rather than just the number of services provided, the province says.

Click here to read the full article.

Managing Chronic Conditions by Making Connections

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connection

What do Livongo, MyHealthTeams, Health Decision Technology, Wellness Layer and Sensely have in common? In addition to them all having an online presence, they are also focusing on chronic disease management. Key to this management, or more specifically self-management, is to help people with chronic diseases, or loved ones with such conditions, connect with others – patients, coaches, etc. Through these connections, the hope is that the financial and physical burden being experienced will be reversed or in someway lessened.  Click here to discover more about these initiatives.

“We Are Detectives” – Appropriate Use of Antipsychotics in LTC

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In 2013, Alberta Health Services (AHS) funded a pilot project that focused on the use of antipsychotics in long-term care facilities. Starting with 11 early-adopter sites, the Appropriate Use of Antipsychotics in Long-Term Care Project has now been implemented in all of the 170 long-term sites across the province. The results have been very positive for all involved – residents, families, and staff. Click here to explore the AUA Toolkit, where you can find news and resources relating to the AUA project.

Autism and Workplace Success

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L AutismFor an individual with autism, finding and holding a job can be very difficult. However, according to a research project conducted by Lois Rosenwald, Renee DePastino and Patrick Iben, steps can be taken to make the workplace more supportive and conducive to a person with autism. To find out about the study’s findings and recommendations, read the article, “How can we help young adults with autism thrive in the workplace?”.