No Images? Click here The Waterloo Wellington LHIN’s news for health professionals provides the latest updates from across the local health system as we work together to deliver high-quality, integrated, and patient-centred care for local residents. Supporting Caregivers: “At the time, I was scared. At my age, I knew I couldn’t provide the care (my husband) needed on my own,” says Audrey. “The result of that would have been devastating.” Audrey now receives respite support four days a week. From Innovation to Action, Collaboration is Key A few months ago on this blog, I challenged our health care ecosystem to go beyond innovating and truly disrupt how we approach solutions in health care to improve patient experience and outcomes. The response was outstanding! Advance Care Planning: Like many, Anne had never heard of advance care planning. After being diagnosed with lung cancer, it became clear she had a limited understanding of her illness and never had conversations about her wishes or values with her family or her medical team. While it is ideal to start these conversations long before someone is sick and in the hospital, initiating these conversations with Anne was the first time she was able to openly discuss her fears and what her wishes were for her care. Profile: Linval George, “What I love about being a nurse is that I am able to make a difference in the lives of my clients simply through caring. I really enjoy building meaningful, therapeutic relationships that help my patients build on their strengths and improve their quality of life. My mother and my aunt, who is an RNP (Registered Nurse Practitioner), inspired me to be a nurse. They taught me that the patient who comes into the hospital is somebody’s loved one and deserves to be cared for as if they were a member of your own family." New Physicians Bolster St. Mary’s Cardiac Centre’s Deep Bench of Talent As demand for cardiac services at St. Mary’s Regional Cardiac Care Centre has grown, so too has its roster of cardiac physicians who bring a variety of specialized skills to the community. The growing demand for service was recently recognized by the Ministry of Health and Long-term Care with an investment of $3.6 million to fund nearly 800 additional cardiac procedures like surgery, diagnostic angiograms and angioplasty. Expand Your Knowledge Through Free Online Course Offerings The Waterloo Wellington LHIN is partnering with Langs Community Health Centre to offer 250 free Institute for Health Improvement (IHI) licenses to health partners throughout Waterloo Wellington. This is an exciting opportunity to gain new skills and knowledge, ranging from learning effective service redesign strategies, to positively impacting population health, to how to incorporate health equity planning into new programs. Additional $15.4 million announced to reduce wait times at local hospitals Local residents will benefit from a new investment of $15.4 million in local hospitals to meet the needs of our growing communities, and to reduce wait times for key procedures such as hip and knee replacements and cataract surgeries. Read more from MPPs: Help Make Our Community Report the Best Ever! Do you have a positive story to share about how your practice, program or organization has improved the patient experience? Or have you received exceptional care? We are on the hunt for clinician and patient quotes for our annual community report. Home & Community Care Update The Waterloo Wellington Community Care Access Centre (WWCCAC), including its employees, programs, and services, is transferring to the Waterloo Wellington Local Health Integration Network (LHIN). Together, we will better connect the health system together to improve the patient experience. As of May 17, 2017, all WWCCAC employees will become employees of the Waterloo Wellington LHIN. While we celebrate our organizations coming together, it is business as usual and home and community care services currently delivered through the WWCCAC will continue as part of the Waterloo Wellington LHIN.
There will be no changes to the services available or the providers delivering care. The only immediate difference you will notice will be that your WWCCAC colleagues will now wear Waterloo Wellington LHIN ID badges and introduce themselves as part of the Waterloo Wellington Local Health Integration Network. WWLHIN Alzheimer Society Waterloo Wellington: Joins Healthcare Hub GRH: New equipment decreases surgery delays for patients GRH: Teaching unit provides exceptional care while advancing health education HQO Report: Ontario Clinicians Deliver HQO: Quality Improvement Plans Having an Impact Crossing Borders: Wins national Ken Spencer Award for innovation in education. Congratulations! |