Please drop off donations at the Volunteer Services Office.

The Volunteer Association appreciates your donations to enhance their contributions to the Patient Clothing Cupboard. Free clothing to patients who are in need upon discharge from the Hospital.

Dr. Brianne Wood, Associate Scientist at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) and the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC) / Thunder Bay Regional Health Research Institute (TBRHRI), has been awarded the Fellowship in Health Systems Resilience by the Health Research Foundation of Innovative Medicines Canada. Dr. Wood was selected by the foundation’s committee of leading Canadian life sciences experts to receive $450,000 over three years.

As an Associate Scientist in Social Accountability and Learning Health Systems, Dr. Wood’s research aims to improve health care in Northern Ontario by building a system that reflects the health needs of communities. She will investigate how communities and health systems can better generate knowledge and understanding to help inform policy both in times of emergency and for the future of health system improvement.

“I’m thrilled for the opportunity this fellowship provides, and for the trust the foundation places in me to advance my research. My vision is to improve health and health care in Northern, rural, and remote communities. Partnerships, shared strategies and resources between education, research, health services and communities are essential to create meaningful impact. This fellowship will enable me to better prepare underserved health systems to meet the needs of their health workforce and the communities they serve,” says Dr. Wood.

Her research comes at a critical time, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to highlight ongoing health-care inequities in Northern Ontario. Rural and remote communities in the region face health workforce shortages, burnout, fewer resources, and more complex population health issues compared to the rest of Ontario. The Fellowship will examine the resilience of Northern Ontario’s health system—specifically to strengthen the system’s capacity to adapt to crisis, emergencies and change—while maintaining and improving health care service.

“Through initiatives such as the Fellowship in Health Systems Resilience, our industry makes valuable contributions to public policy and helps Canadians prepare and be equipped to face our next public health crisis. I believe that Dr. Wood and her work will help Canada curb the impact of future pandemics and other health threats, especially in vulnerable communities,” says Pamela Fralick, President, Innovative Medicines Canada.

On Monday, January 10th, there will be two changes coming to Webex:

Network Password Synchronization

1. You will still login with your email address.
2. Your Webex password will not be unique to Webex, instead it will synchronize with your Network/Groupwise password.
3. The “Forgot password” link on the login screen will no longer be required.

Recording Disclaimer

• All meeting attendees will see a Webex Usage disclaimer when joining a meeting.  The Disclaimer will let attendees know that the meeting may be recorded and accessed later. 
• Attendees must either agree or decline the terms.  If the terms are declined, the attendee will not be able to join the meeting.

As a group of leaders across Northwestern Ontario, we take our responsibilities to ensure the safety and protection of our health care workers, patients and their families most seriously. In addition, we believe it is our collective responsibility to provide the highest standard of care while preserving and maintaining access to critical health services across our communities.

As such, given our commitment to quality and our duty to protect those that are most vulnerable, we are proud to support a region-wide move to mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies across all hospital and health care sites at our respective organizations. This change aligns the hospital/health care sites with long-term care homes where staff COVID-19 vaccinations are provincially mandated.

All hospitals in Northwestern Ontario have now implemented mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies, beginning with the primary series of the vaccines.

Sincerely,
North West Region Hospital Chief Executive Officers

Jorge VanSlyke, CEO
Atikokan General Hospital

Sue LeBeau, CEO
Red Lake Margaret Cochenour Memorial Hospital

Doreen Armstrong-Ross, CEO
Dryden Regional Health Centre

Henry Gauthier, CEO
Riverside Health Care Facilities

Darryl Galusha, CEO
Geraldton District Hospital

Debbie Hardy, CEO
Santé Manitouwadge Health

Ray Racette, CEO
Lake of the Woods District Hospital

Heather Lee, CEO
Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre

Cathy Eady, CEO
Nipigon District Memorial Hospital

Dr. Rhonda Crocker Ellacott, CEO
Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre

Adam Brown, CEO
North of Superior Healthcare Group

Kelli O’Brien, CEO
St. Joseph’s Care Group

Shared on behalf of Dr. Rhonda Crocker Ellacott, President and CEO, TBRHSC, and CEO, TBRHRI; Jennifer Wintermans, EVP, Communications Corporate Relations, COVID-19 Lead

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First and foremost, we need to begin by stating how proud we are that 96.3% of our staff have been vaccinated. This is an incredible outcome and tells our patients and colleagues how serious we are about keeping them safe as it relates to COVID-19. We would like to thank you for your commitment to our patients and for serving as role models for everyone in the communities we serve. A quick reminder for those who have received their first and second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to send your vaccination receipt to Occupational Health and Safety (ohs@tbh.net) as soon as possible.

We have continued to educate and inform those who have chosen to not get vaccinated, while reinforcing the fact that full vaccination has been shown to be effective in reducing COVID-19 virus transmission and protecting vaccinated individuals from severe consequences of COVID-19 and its variants. Given the continuing spread of the virus, the compelling data demonstrating a higher incidence of COVID-19 among the unvaccinated population and the increasing levels of contact between individuals as we move into the winter season, the time to act is now. Vaccination is a key element of protection against COVID-19 and mandatory vaccination of Hospital and Health Research Institute workers is one of the critical control measures during this pandemic.

As you all know and as we previously indicated, after the Ontario government decided last month to leave decisions regarding mandatory vaccinations to individual hospitals, we began a full review and assessment of our situation here at TBRHSC and TBRHRI.

Engagement and consultation consisted on the following:

• CEO’s Blog on November 5th informing about the need to consider the policy and requesting feedback from all staff, employees, volunteers and learners
• Town Hall on November 10, 2021 informing and requesting feedback
• Survey sent to Senior Leadership Council and members of the Medical Advisory Committee
• Multiple meetings with Regional Hospital CEOs and Chiefs of Staff to support a consistent regional approach.
• Internal communication channels such as an organizational-wide memo (all staff, professional staff, learners, and volunteers), the Daily Informed Newsletter, Hospital Activity Update, daily morning situation updates, COVID-19 information portal on the intranet and poster displays throughout the organization.
• Multiple meetings with Senior Leadership Council, Bioethics, Occupational Health & Safety, Infection Prevention & Control and Infectious Disease Specialist.

We conducted a thorough review, based on the above consultation of the need for a Vaccination Policy, with support and endorsement by our Medical Advisory Committee,   Senior Leadership Team, and special advisors. The latest evidence from the Ontario Science Table and from Public Health Ontario informed decisions.  In addition, the team conducted a risk assessment of program and service impacts to ascertain any potential effects that may result from a care and program perspective.  Risk mitigation plans have since been developed to ensure the continued access to care and services across the organization. 

Additionally, our hospital has collaborated with all 12 Regional Hospitals across the Northwest in support of a mandatory vaccine mandate – which was also endorsed by the Chiefs of Staff and CEOS across all 12 hospitals.  This agreement and endorsement speaks to the commitment to quality and duty to protect those most vulnerable across our full region while preserving and maintaining access to critical health services across NW communities.

Last week, based on the recommendation from the Senior Leadership Council (with special advisors), the Board unanimously approved the implementation of a mandatory vaccination policy for all employees, credentialed professional staff, active volunteers (including Board members) and learners. Both new hires and current staff will be required to receive their first dose by January 14^th, 2022 and be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment effective February 11^th, 2022.

We can appreciate that for some of you, the small group of people who have not already chosen to be vaccinated, this will be a challenging decision to cope with. However, implementing a mandatory vaccination policy stands by our philosophy to put patient care and safety at the center of everything we do at our Hospital. We need to protect patients (many of whom are at high risk for serious health effects related to COVID-19 illness) who interact with and receive services from staff, learners and volunteers. With the pandemic still having devastating impacts in our province and country, and with the surge in the new Omicron variant, this is a decision that had to be made.

This decision also aligns us with our partners in long-term care and over 120 other hospitals throughout the province, including all 12 in Northwestern Ontario, who support the implementation of a mandatory vaccination policy. On October 19^th, the Ontario Hospital Association recommended to the Province a provincial directive that sets out an overarching commitment requiring all health care workers to be vaccinated regardless of employer, with each organization working expeditiously to meet this goal in a manner that addresses their circumstances. This position was formally endorsed by 120 Ontario hospitals employing 166,000 staff. Mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policies are now in place at most Ontario hospitals and at all long-term care homes.

So, what happens next?

Well, the implementation plan allows adequate time for unvaccinated staff to decide on the interval period between both doses (21 days to 8 weeks) based on Ministry of Health and National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) guidelines.  Individuals wanting to have their doses with a full 8-week interval in between doses will need to have their first dose no later than December 17, 2021,to be compliant with the timelines for the requirement of the second dose date of February 11, 2022. 

Unvaccinated staff can book an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine in several ways:

• The e-health scheduling system at https://tbdhu.canadaehs.com/tbdhu/hospital/. Those who do not have access to a computer can use one in the Hospital’s library. You can also access the scheduling system online on your smartphone.

• You can call 684-6000 (extension 4585) to book an appointment by speaking with a clerk during regular clinic hours or by leaving a voicemail.

• Staff may also get vaccinated through an external source, such as a primary health care provider or the Thunder Bay District Health Unit via https://www.tbdhu.com/covidclinics.

Individuals with a valid medical exemption that is in line with Ministry of Health’s updated guidance for medical exemptions, may be exempt from this mandatory requirement.  Submission must include written proof of a bona fide medical reason, provided by a physician or registered nurse in the extended class that sets out a documented medical reason for not being fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and the effective time period for that medical reason. Please contact Occupational Health and Safety for more information.

Some of you may ask about creed-based or religious exemptions. The Ontario Human Rights Commission’s (OHRC’s) Policy Statement issued on September 22, 2021, on COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates and Proof of Vaccination Mandates states that “the OHRC’s position is that a person who chooses not to be vaccinated based on personal preference does not have the right to accommodation under the Code”. Such requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by our Human Resources Department.

We are here to support and will help individuals upon request to ensure compliance with the COVID-19 vaccination requirement, including ensuring access to a vaccination appointment, accommodating work schedules if necessary to attend vaccination appointments and making referrals to health professionals who can provide education and information about the COVID-19 vaccination.

These are the important dates to keep in mind:

December 6, 2021 – Announcement of mandatory vaccination requirement.

December 17, 2021 – Individuals wanting to have their doses with a full 8-week interval in between doses, will need to have their first dose no later than December 17, 2021 in order to be compliant with the timelines for the requirement of the second dose date of February 11, 2022. 

January 14, 2022 – Requirement for first dose (at minimum).  Individuals who have not provided proof of first dose may resign or will be placed on an unpaid leave of absence until the earlier of two (2) weeks or until proof of first dose is received.

January 28, 2022 – Individuals who have not received their first dose and provided proof may resign or will be terminated with cause for non-compliance with Hospital policy.

February 11, 2022 – Requirement for second dose. Individuals who have not provided proof of all required doses may resign or will be terminated with cause for non-compliance with Hospital policy.

It is the responsibility of employees and credentialed professional staff to meet the requirements and deadlines above. Employees who have questions should monitor their TBRHSC/TBRHRI email for communications from Human Resources and speak to their manager. Credentialed professional staff who have questions should contact the Chief of Staff.   

We are anticipating that there will be some employees or credentialed professional staff who will choose to not get vaccinated and we have contingency plans in place to manage this.  We value every team member yet we need to do what is best to protect our patients and the safety of our organization and community. We are working through contingency plans to address the absences and departures of colleagues who would choose not to be fully vaccinated. Our assessment is that such absences or departures would be less disruptive than reactive measures needed following notification of COVID-19 positive patients or health care workers that trigger contact tracing, increased risks of hospital transmission or outbreak, and unexpected temporary loss of health care workers for 14 days due to high-risk exposures or due to having acquired COVID-19.

We have all done an incredible job during this pandemic as a team pivoting and adapting to changing circumstances that have challenged us at every angle.  It will be key to continue working as a team, showing empathy, and not judging our colleagues who may choose to not get fully vaccinated.  Please, most importantly, be respectful of one another. 

In closing, this policy stands by our philosophy to put patient care and safety at the centre of everything we do at our Hospital.

For more information, please refer to the COVID-19 Mandatory Vaccination Policy

All Hospital COVID-19 updates and resources are available on the iNtranet at https://comms.tbrhsc.net/covid-19-information/.

Shared on behalf of Adam Vinet, Executive Vice President, Patient Experience and Chief Nursing Executive and Ron Turner, Interim Vice President, Patient Programs and Director, Acute Medicine, Stroke and Seniors’ Program

As an organization, the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre is committed to delivering quality patient care. In order to meet our community’s needs and move towards normal operations while still managing the pandemic we are using more nurses at the Hospital than we have ever used before.

We are utilizing nursing staff to:

• Run immunization clinics and the COVID Assessment Centre
• Support the changes in our Emergency Department’s footprint, which allows for social distancing while maintaining assessment and treatment spaces 
• Increased our Operating Room capacity to reduce any COVID related delays
• Continue to staff a 32 bed Transition Care Unit at Hogarth River Manner

Vacancy management is always a challenge especially in Northern Ontario. We are now facing a global, national and provincial nursing shortage. Health care sick leaves are up globally in every profession and the stress and burnout of the pandemic is real.

As an organization, we are engaged in the following activities to support our staffing:

• Participate in a regional Health Human Resource (HHR) Task Force to gain strategies for the North
• Regional Chief Nursing Executives are working together to look at HHR and nursing
• Partnering with our local college and university on enrollment and supporting international nursing graduates
• Working with recruitment specialists
• Focusing on retention strategies that are based on staff feedback

In addition to the above activities, we will be introducing Personal Support Workers (PSWs) to support the provision of patient care. PSWs work as a member of the interprofessional healthcare team. They are trained to assist in the identification of relevant patient information using basic assessment and communication skills, assist patient with routine activities of daily living, applying basic knowledge of growth and development, common alterations in functioning, disease prevention, health promotion and maintenance, rehabilitation and restorative care.

The addition of PSWs will allow our nurses to focus on acute patient needs while still ensuring that patient’s basic needs are being met. As our new model of care takes shape, additional information will be shared and staff will be engaged.