Promoting Safety: Behavioural Emergency Response during the COVID-19 Pandemic
During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, patients with and without pre-existing mental health diagnoses will either be admitted to the hospital as patients under investigation for COVID-19 or patients positive for COVID-19. A safe and timely response is required for patients exhibiting escalating behaviours (e.g., responsive, agitated and/or aggressive behaviours) to prevent harm to the patient, nearby patients and staff. In this paper, we report on a new protocol that has been implemented throughout our institution to address Code White calls for escalating behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic. This procedure uses a least...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
In Their Own Words: What do Healthcare Workers Want from Their Organization during the COVID-19 Pandemic?
We report qualitative findings from a two-stage survey administered to HCWs at a large acute care hospital in Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic to identify their concerns and wellness needs. Responses reflected HCWs' desires to be heard, protected, prepared, supported and cared for by the organization. HCWs' concerns were diverse and dynamic, reflecting the specific circumstances of their work and personal lives as well as the shifting landscape of the pandemic. We discuss implications for organizations seeking to promote and protect HCWs' psychological well-being and resilience during pandemics. (Source: Healthcare Quarterly)
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Key Characteristics of a Fragile Healthcare Supply Chain: Learning from a Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the many challenges that provincial health systems have experienced while scaling health services to protect Canadians from viral transmission and support care for those who get infected. Supply chain capacity makes it possible for health systems to deliver care and implement public health initiatives safely. In this paper, we present emerging findings from a national research study that documents the key features of the fragility of the health supply chain evident across the seven Canadian provinces. Results suggest that the fragility of the health supply chain contributes to substant...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
An Evidence-Based Strategy to Scale Vaccination in Canada
Provincial health systems have been challenged by the surge in healthcare demands caused by the COVID-19 pandemic; the COVID-19 vaccine rollout across the country has further added to these challenges. A successful vaccination campaign is widely viewed as the only way to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, placing greater urgency on the need for a rapid vaccination strategy. In this paper, we present emerging findings, from a national research study, that document the key challenges faced by current vaccine rollout strategies, which include procurement and leadership strategies, citizen engagement and limitations in supply cha...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
An Analysis of the Long-Term Care Policy Mandates Implemented in Canada during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic
This report compares the experiences of the five Canadian provinces that were most affected by COVID-19. This includes a comparison of the five mandates that provincial governments implemented in order to protect long-term care residents. Findings from this report indicate that the Canadian provinces whose long-term care systems were most devastated by COVID-19 failed their residents by responding too slowly compared with provinces with similar long-term care systems. This lesson should guide policy reform to safeguard residents during the second wave and beyond. (Source: Healthcare Quarterly)
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Advancing Family Presence Policies and Practices in the Canadian Health and Care Context: COVID-19 and Beyond
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, restrictive visitor policies have curtailed the ability of family caregivers to be present to partner in the care of loved ones. Building on the success of the "Better Together" campaign, Healthcare Excellence Canada – the newly amalgamated organization of the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement and the Canadian Patient Safety Institute – has co-developed policy guidance and "Essential Together" programming that recognizes the significant role of essential care partners. This work aims to support the safe reintegrati...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
How Children and Youth with Medical Complexity Use Hospital and Emergency Department Care across Canada
Children and youth with medical complexity are a diverse group with uncommon diagnoses, a spectrum of needs and varying access to supports. Although this population represents a small proportion of all children, their unique needs lead to substantial use of healthcare services. With its first pan-Canadian report on children and youth with medical complexity, the Canadian Institute for Health Information examined how this population uses healthcare services. Key findings include the wide variation in the rate of medical complexity among children and youth across Canada. Children and youth with medical complexity were found ...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Activating Patients and Families to Improve Palliative Care: The Waiting Room Revolution
We need to support and educate palliative care specialists and generalist providers, especially family physicians, on how to integrate an early palliative care approach into care for those with a serious illness. However, there are very few care providers compared to the number of patients and caregivers in society. To increase access to palliative care at a population level, we need a waiting room revolution, one where patients and families shift from being passive to being active in shaping their experience with serious illness. A co-design approach with patients and families can help overcome barriers to accessing palli...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
From the Editors
(Source: Healthcare Quarterly)
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - April 15, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
“Call Me by My Name”: Improving Communication with Family Members at the Bedside via the Caregiver Identification Badge
Conclusion: Communication with patients and families is crucial across medical disciplines. The optimization of caregiver identification badges to facilitate the use of preferred names and pronouns will ultimately lead to the more effective and safer delivery of high-quality care. (Source: Healthcare Quarterly)
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - January 4, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Developing and Implementing a Patient Behaviour Risk Screening, Communication and Care Planning Intervention for Hospital Settings
Workplace violence prevention of patient behaviours is a primary safety focus in hospital settings. In response to provincial mandates, a multi-site tertiary care hospital system developed the Behaviour Safety Risk Communication and Care Planning Program. Components include patient risk screening, communication tools and care plans that outline mitigation strategies. The program has been implemented at six sites using the following strategies: educational and planning meetings, formation of steering committees, identification of champions, educational materials/training, facilitation and consultation, and audit and feedbac...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - January 4, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Use of High-Reliability Principles in the Evolution of a Hospital Command Centre
Hospitals and health systems across the world strive to achieve consistently safe care delivery and reduce patient harm. In November 2017, Humber River Hospital became one of the first hospitals in North America to implement a hospital command centre to manage patient access and flow. The command centre outputs relevant real-time data that have been integrated from multiple automated systems and uses predictive analytics to support early identification of patients at risk of harm and deterioration. The aim of this descriptive article is to present the conceptual development of Humber River Hospital's Command Centre. (Sourc...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - January 4, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Environmental Sustainability in Canadian Critical Care: A Nationwide Survey Study on Medical Waste Management
Background: To date, the literature surrounding healthcare sustainability has focused largely on operating rooms, energy efficiency and biohazardous waste management. Few studies have looked at the sustainability within intensive care units (ICUs).
Objective: Our study sought to capture the array of sustainability initiatives undertaken by Canadian ICUs and gain a better understanding of current practices with regard to the management of single-use equipment waste.
Methods: We conducted a nationwide e-mail survey through the Canadian Critical Care Network.
Results: We received responses from a total of 81 hospital sites...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - January 4, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Decontaminating N95 Respirators for Reuse in a Hospital Setting
With the global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals in Canada and around the world have been forced to consider conservation strategies to ensure continued availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare providers. To mitigate critical PPE shortages, Sinai Health System (Sinai Health), a large academic healthcare institution in Canada, has developed and operationalized a standard operating procedure for the collection, decontamination and reuse of N95 respirators and other single-use PPE using a vaporized hydrogen peroxide decontamination method. Sinai Health has incorporated stringent quality a...
Source: Healthcare Quarterly - January 4, 2021 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
