Working Together for Better Quality and Safety in Health Care Delivery

---

Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC) is taking part in Accreditation Canada’s Qmentum accreditation program, which will culminate with an on-site survey scheduled for May 2022.

Accreditation is a continuous quality improvement process; it helps our organization identify what we are doing well and where we need to focus our improvement efforts. Everyone in our organization plays a vital role in accreditation, including professional staff, front-line staff, non-clinical employees, volunteers, Board members, patients, and families.

Health care accreditation through the Qmentum program is an ongoing process of assessing health care organizations against standards of excellence to identify what is being done well and what needs to be improved. It is a four year cycle with completion of key requirements leading up to the on-site survey.

In 2018, TBRHSC passed Accreditation with Commendation. The Accreditation decision guidance is as follows:

Even though we attained 98.4% for Total Criteria, we had a few Required Organization Processes that were unmet. These were followed up in subsequent interactions with Accreditation Canada.

Quality and Risk Management is the corporate lead for Accreditation. Following engagement with leaders, we have rolled out the assessments for standards. We encourage everyone to participate in their program and department assessments.

Accreditation Canada solicits the experience of staff through the Worklife Pulse and the Canadian Patent Safety Tools. These are 2-page individual response surveys collated through the Accreditation portal. Based on the employee number and the response rate of 2018, we are required to attain the following threshold:

Share your experience by completing a survey before April 30th

To complete a survey and ensure proper data collection, please use the survey link below that most accurately reflects your role and area of care. The survey takes approximately 5-10 minutes to complete. There is the option to resume the survey if you wish to complete it in multiple sittings. Copy the ‘Resume Code’ as indicated on the bottom tab. For the best experience, please access the survey by opening the link with your Chrome browser. All inputs are anonymized and aggregate results will be provided after the closing date of April 30th, 2021.

Worklife Pulse (all staff: clinical and non-clinical)

• Link: https://www3.accreditation.ca/OrgInstrument
• Organization Code: THUBA
• Password: 2FF3577F

Worklife Pulse for Physicians (specific to physicians)

• Link: https://www3.accreditation.ca/OrgInstrument
• Organization Code: THUBA
• Password: 8562EDB3

Canadian Patient Safety Culture Survey Tool (all front-line staff and administrative staff working in clinical units/areas)

• Link: https://www3.accreditation.ca/OrgInstrument
• Organization Code: THUBA
• Password: 2C096CF8

All updates will be shared with staff as we complete our milestones: assessments, survey tools, patient experience results, training and dry runs for departments and programs.

For more information about accreditation, please contact Chitra Jacob, Manager, Quality and Risk Management at jacobc@tbh.net.

Congratulations to this month’s Early Bird winner: Kristina Asselstine!

Kristina is a Grade 2/3 teacher in Thunder Bay, and she’s excited to use her $1,000 prize on renovations! Her ticket is now back in the draw for the Grand Prize on March 26th.

You could be the next big Thunder Bay 50/50 winner! Get your tickets at www.thunderbay5050.ca.

(Raffle Licence #RAF1199631)

Sent on behalf of Crystal Pirie, Senior Director Indigenous Collaboration

---

We are happy to advise that the voluntary Indigenous Self Identification process has launched today. If you recall, we introduced the initiative last October to our leadership group. We recently provided an update to leadership in February and March. Not only will the hospital have access to data to begin to address health equity issues, we are required to report on the initiative, as it is one of seven reporting requirements on the 2020-21 Quality Improvement Plan.

The question “Would you like to self-identify as Indigenous?” will be a mandatory field in Meditech the first time a patient presents to any one of the registration points in our Hospital. Follow up questions will be asked to those who respond “yes”. A patient’s response will be attached to their file and can be updated at subsequent visits upon request. In addition, a self-serve web-form will also be launched, where patients can self-identify at any time via the Hospital website.

Staff resources are included in this package. A patient poster and patient brochures will also be distributed to all departments. The brochures include more information on the benefits of patients choosing to self-identify, how they can participate in the voluntary self-identification initiative and details on how the information will be become part of the patient electronic record and protected under the Personal Health Information Protection Act (PHIPA). Please share this resource with your patients as appropriate and feel free to make more copies of the brochures as needed. 

If you have any questions please reach out to Crystal or any of the planning team members:

Crystal Pirie – piriec@tbh.net  
Susan Bale – bales@tbh.net
Tracey Hill – hillt@tbh.net
Mieke DeRoover – deroovem@tbh.net
Jennifer Madahbee – madahbej@tbh.net

Bay Village Coffee fundraiser generated $18,000 in memory of Patti Hobbs

It was on the first day of February that Alan Forbes, co-owner Bay Village Coffee, recalled thinking, “Oh man, this is going to be bigger than we thought.” For the team at Bay Village Coffee had just launched a fundraiser selling large heart-shaped cookies with buttercream frosting and the response was overwhelming. “We thought we’d maybe make 100 cookies a day,” he said, “but on the first day we sold well above 100, and the demand just kept growing.”

“We knew pretty early on that our goal of raising $5,000 for the Our Hearts At Home Campaign to bring cardiovascular surgery to Thunder Bay was going to happen,” he said, “but we honestly had no idea that we’d be able to raise $18,000 by the end of the month.”

The cookie fundraiser was a memorial tribute to their dear friend Patti Hobbs who passed away after a heart attack in late 2020; the mother of Shannon Gagne, a valued part of the team at Bay Village Coffee.

“Patti was an amazing person,” said Gary Mack, co-owner, Bay Village Coffee. “She extended her love to all of us and made us feel part of her family.”

“She was always bringing us food. We were the official taste testers for many different recipes,” laughed Gary, “as she knew we worked long hours and weren’t always feeding ourselves in the most nutritious way.”

“My Mom was the type of person who lived and cared for everyone else,” said Shannon. “She was always taking care of other people and, I can guarantee, if it had been anyone else that passed away, she would have been the first to do this fundraiser in our memory.”

Continued Shannon, “Throughout the month, it was incredible to witness all the people whose lives my Mom had reached, including former colleagues from the Port Arthur Clinic and even the people who’d taken care of her in the Hospital. There were so many times people would come in to buy cookies and share a little tidbit about my Mom. Even the delivery driver who brought pizza one night when we were working late ended up knowing my Mom. The outpouring of support was so special. I want to thank everyone who bought cookies, donated or sent positive messages to our family.”

The idea for the fundraiser had actually been discussed back when Patti was in the Hospital after her heart attack. She was in the ICU for 10 days, and then in Unit 2C, when her health declined and she was transferred to Hospice, where she eventually passed away.

“You just feel so helpless,” said Shannon. “When I came back to work in January, we discussed doing the heart cookie fundraiser and it seemed like the right way to honour my Mom’s memory.”

“Our customers were so amazing with their support,” said Alan. “We even had people calling and buying cookies to donate to others.”

“We were able to use those donations to provide cookies to the Hospital Emergency Department, ICU, 2C team, the paramedics and St. Joseph’s Hospice,” said Gary. “All the places and people that cared so beautifully for Patti.”

“We even had one customer who bought over 100 cookies altogether,” said Gary. “She would purchase a few, share them with those she loved, and then come back for more. These cookies really helped spread love all over the city.”

“Our team is so proud of the money that was raised in Patti’s memory,” said Alan. “The incredible work done at the Hospital was a big factor in the support this fundraiser received. We all know people with heart disease. To know that Patti’s legacy will be to, one day, have a full cardiovascular surgery program here at our Hospital, is beyond special to Patti’s family, including her extended family here at Bay Village Coffee. We will all miss her, but we will continue to honour her memory with another fundraiser next year. I know she’d be here helping us if she could.”

All donations to the Our Hearts At Home Cardiovascular Campaign bring us one step closer to having life- and limb-saving cardiac and vascular surgery at our Hospital. You can help! Donate at www.ourheartsathome.ca or call (807) 345-4673.

March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month.

Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for you to get screened for cancer. If you are between the ages of 50 and 74 years, you should be screened for colon cancer regularly.

Find out if you are eligible for colon cancer screening by visiting www.tbrhsc.net/cancerscreening.

Funding Will Help Enhance Supports and Reduce Wait Times for Children and Youth

---

The Ontario government is providing over $1.5 million in annual funding to expand access to specialized mental health and addictions services in Northwestern Ontario. This funding will be used to hire up to six psychiatrists and help to develop a systemwide response to mental health and addictions challenges in the region through local community-based services, including culturally appropriate services for Indigenous children and youth.

Details were provided today by Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, Michael Tibollo, Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, and Greg Rickford, Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines and Minister of Indigenous Affairs.

“Now more than ever, it is critical that we expand access to mental health and addictions services across the province to ensure every Ontarian can receive the safe and effective supports they deserve, no matter their age or where they live,” said Minister Elliott. “With today’s investment, we will be working with communities and Indigenous health partners to build a treatment network that will support children and youth, families, and communities across Northwestern Ontario on their journey to wellness.”

When children and youth experience mental health and addictions challenges, it can often have a significant impact on their family, and in smaller regions across the province, this can affect entire communities. This investment will:

• Recruit physicians for the Child and Adolescent Multidisciplinary Psychiatry Services (CHAMPS) Program, operated by the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, in partnership with the St. Joseph’s Care Group;
  
• Further expand services in the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Services (CAPS) program in the Northwestern Ontario region; and
  
• Build a centralized service hub in the city of Thunder Bay from which additional satellite services can grow to cover all jurisdictions in the region as a treatment network for specialized mental health and addictions services for children and youth aged 19 years and younger.

Once fully implemented, these resources are expected to support approximately 1,800 unique patients each year and significantly reduce the wait times for these services in the region.

This new funding complements over $900,000 that was previously provided by the government to support the operations of the CHAMPS program and to partner with Indigenous mental health and addictions service providers across Northwestern Ontario to co-develop culturally appropriate services.

“Our government will continue taking real and meaningful action, so that we can build a modern, comprehensive and connected mental health and addictions system for all Ontarians,” said Associate Minister Tibollo. “This investment will help improve the mental health and addictions care provided to children and youth in the North and will address the extensive wait times for critical services that have existed for far too long. This investment will increase mental health and addictions supports for youth in Northwestern Ontario at a time when they are needed more urgently than ever,” said Minister Rickford. “The pandemic has exacerbated the challenges already facing many young people in the region – particularly Indigenous children and youth – and these additional supports are critical to ensuring not only their well-being, but that of their families and communities.”

Quick Facts

• Healthy people are essential for a healthy economy. On March 24, 2021, the government will release the 2021 Ontario Budget. It will focus on protecting people’s health, with a plan to defeat COVID-19, and support for people and jobs.
• Child and adolescent psychiatrists help support children and youth live in their communities in a positive and healthy manner. They work in multidisciplinary teams, which typically include the patient’s family, primary care provider, and other specialists. Their services allow many children and youth to be able to thrive in their communities through the referrals and supports these specialists provide, avoiding escalating crisis situations.
• This funding complements the $1 million that was provided to the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Services (CAPS) program this year as part of Ontario’s Roadmap to Wellness mental health and addictions strategy.
• In addition to the funding announced today, Ontario is investing $3.8 billion over 10 years to create new services and expand programs as part of Roadmap to Wellness, Ontario’s plan to develop a modern, connected and comprehensive mental health and addictions system over 10 years. Under Roadmap to Wellness, Ontario has invested $350 million in new annualized funding for mental health and addictions services since 2019-20. In October 2020, the government invested $176 million to help expand access to critical mental health and addictions services, create new supports and expand programs, building on the $174 million invested last year for mental health and addictions programs.
• In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the province invested up to $194 million in emergency funding for mental health and addictions services, enabling more than 62,000 Ontarians to access the services they need during these difficult times, including virtual supports.
• The data from the modelling indicates that opioid-related overdose deaths have continued to climb since the pandemic began. In addition, the rate of opioid-related deaths in Thunder Bay is double the provincial rate. Over the past three years, ten youth have died of an opioid-related death in Northwestern Ontario.
• Visit COVID-19: Support for People to find information about the many available, confidential and free mental health and addictions services and supports for Ontarians of all ages.

The health and safety of all staff, professional staff, patients and the community is the utmost priority of Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC). In response to the increase in cases of COVID-19 in our community, combined with the pressures on the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and a COVID-19 outbreak on the 1A Medical Unit, TBRHSC is now in Level Grey (Lockdown).

There are currently 22 intensive care patients admitted to TBRHSC. Of those, 19 are on ventilators. In addition, due to the outbreak, the 24 beds in the 1A Medical Unit are unavailable for admissions. Level Grey stimulates actions that increase the availability of critical care service for those in need. These include:

• transferring to southern Ontario of some patients from our ICU to hospitals with more ICU capacity;
• diverting to southern Ontario Critical Care patients who would otherwise be transferred from regional communities to our hospital, except those with life and limb needs;
• further reducing elective procedures;
• enhanced collaboration with health system partners to transfer patients to other appropriate care locations.

These measures enable the following at TBRHSC:

• available space in the ICU to accept patients in need of critical care;
• further expansion of the dedicated COVID-19 Care Unit as needed to meet increasing needs;
• ensuring the availability of clinical and support staff to work in areas of highest need;
• continuation of emergent surgeries;
• reduced traffic in the hospital to minimize the risk of spread of infection.

TBRHSC remains a safe place for people to access urgent care.

Registration Link: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/fetal-health-surveillance-2-hour-refresher-virtual-tickets-145515535885

Shared on behalf of Dr. Stewart Kennedy, Executive Vice President Regional Programs, Clinical Supports, and Medical Affairs

---

After 37 years in health care in Thunder Bay, most recently as our Director of Prevention & Screening Clinical Services and Practice Head for Registered Dietitians, Cathy Paroschy Harris has announced her intent to retire.

Cathy’s strong leadership focused on collaboration and efficiency. Her career in health care began as Clinical Dietitian at McKellar Hospital, followed by Nutrition and Food Service Management positions at McKellar Hospital, Lakehead Psychiatric Hospital, and Pioneer Ridge City Home for the Aged. She then came to Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre to work for Sodexo, and moved in 2014 into her current role as the Director of Prevention & Screening Clinical Services.

Cathy has been an advocate for healthy living and supportive work environments, promoting healthy teams in the workplace. She has mentored many professionals and leaders. She also developed nutrition curriculum and taught for Lakehead University’s Nursing Program, Confederation College’s Food Service Worker Program, and Key Skills Training with the City of Thunder Bay. She shared her knowledge and enthusiasm through various provincial expert panels for cancer screening, and the Chronic Disease Prevention Advisory Committee led by Ontario Health, as well as others. She was recognized for her provincial contribution to awareness to the unique health needs of Northwestern Ontario.

Cathy was also Board Chair for Dietitians of Canada, and integral in the start of the Northern Ontario Dietetic Program. She has served on several other regional, provincial and national committees, most recently the Accreditation Council for University and Practicum Dietetic Programs in Canada. In 2017, Cathy was named a Fellow of Dietitians of Canada, in recognition of professional growth, excellence and achievement in her career.

Cathy’s retirement dream is to see Dr. Kennedy participate in Ukrainian dance during her virtual retirement polka party.

Cathy’s last day of work will be March 26, 2021, and I wish to thank her for her commitment and enthusiasm as a health care leader in Northwestern Ontario. Please join me in wishing her all the very best in her retirement.