Safer Healthcare Now! Ontario Node eLetter, February, 2008
 

NEWS

This Month's Centre Stage goes to: Larry McBride, Corporate Relations Manager Health Care Services with 3M Canada Company & Outgoing Board Member, QHN. Read more >

Congratulations to Dr. Michael Baker for receiving the Order of Canada and the Order of Ontario in December. Dr. Baker is Physician-in-Chief, University Health Network, Practicing Physician & Executive Lead, Patient Safety, Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and Co-Chair of the Quality Healthcare Network's (QHN) Safer Healthcare Now! (SHN) Ontario Node Advisory. Read more >

QHN/ SHN abstract submissions accepted to Canada's Forum on Patient Safety and Quality Improvement 2009, April 28-30, 2009, Toronto, Ontario. Thanks to all those QHN members that helped put these submissions together on behalf of the network. The two abstracts are:

• Using innovative tools to push the envelope for culture change: Applied Learning Category
• Facilitating data capture and reporting of patient safety measures: Applied Learning Category

To learn more about this conference, Click Here >.

QHN/SHN workshop designed for long term care sector a huge success. On January 19, 2009, QHN hosted a one day workshop to help support SHN Ontario Node organizations reduce adverse drug events in the long term care setting. More than sixty people from over 30 organizations attended this exciting event. For workshop proceedings, Click Here >.

QHN endorsed the Ontario Health Quality Council's Long-Term Care Quality Improvement project proposal which was submitted to the Minister of Health in late January 2009. For more information on this initiative, please feel free to contact the OHQC at ohqc@ohqc.ca.

QHN/ SHN EVENTS

February 9, 2009, Improvement Fundamentals: the Model for Rapid Cycle Improvement,
Southlake, Regional Health Centre, Newmarket, Ontario.
Click here for more information >

March 3, 2009, Facilitation Fundamentals: Team Facilitation Skills for Healthcare Professionals, Montfort Hospital, Ottawa, Ontario.
Click here for more information >

March 12, 2009, Eating the SSI Elephant: A workshop to help Ontario hospitals reduce surgical site infection while meeting provincial reporting requirements, Toronto, Ontario.
Click here for more information >

May 27-29, 2009, QHN Spring Symposium on Innovation, Kingbridge Centre, King City, Ontario. Click here to preregister >

RESPONDING TO SHN ENROLLEE NEEDS: SSI
Helping organizations reduce Surgical Site Infection while meeting provincial reporting requirements

We have listened to our member’s concerns about the upcoming Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care's plan to create an unprecedented level of transparency in Ontario’s hospitals and publicly report on Surgical Site Infections (SSI) by April 30, 2009.

Why Public Reporting of SSI indicators?

• Surgical site infection is the second most common type of adverse events occurring in hospitalized patients in the US.
• Surgical site infection can increase mortality, readmission rate, and length of stay.
• Appropriate prophylactic antibiotic use is a key component or process measure of reliable perioperative care.

We understand that many of our member organizations require additional resources and support to get them through this process. In response, we are offering our members and those organizations enrolled in Safer Healthcare Now! a workshop on March 12, 2009 entitled: Eating the SSI Elephant. We anticipate this to be a very popular program, so please register today while there is still space.
Click here for more information >

Featured Speakers Include:

• Dr. Michael Baker, MD., Executive Lead, Patient Safety, Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and Safer Healthcare Now! Ontario Node Advisory Committee Co Chair
• Dr. Chris W. Hayes, MD., Staff Physician, Medical Director, Quality & Patient Safety, St. Michael's Hospital and Medical Officer, Canadian Patient Safety Institute
• Dr. Claude LaFlamme, MD., Anesthesiologist, Director Cardio-vascular anesthesiology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Assistant Professor, University of Toronto
• Dr. Allison McGeer,MD., Director of Infection Control, Mount Sinai Hospital Professor Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, Medicine, and Public Health Sciences, University of Toronto
• Dr. Peter Norton, MD., Emeritus Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Calgary

QHN/SHN SSI Interviews:

How do we engage physicians in quality improvement?
QHN sits down with Dr. Peter Norton to find out. Click here to view >

How will participating in SSI prevention intervention of Safer Healthcare Now! improve patient safety?
QHN sits down with Ms. Clara Ballantine to find out. Click here to view >

SSI Resources:

Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care Reports Three More Patient Safety Indicators: McGuinty Government Establishes Ontario As An International Leader In Patient Safety, Toronto, Dec. 30, 2008.
Click here to view >

Blondel-Hill E. Fryters S. Bugs & Drugs 2006. Edmonton AB, Capital Health. Click here to view >

ASHP Therapeutic Guidelines on Antimicrobial Prophylaxis in Surgery. Click here to view >

SSI: Getting Started Kit. Click here to view >

SSI: Measurement Worksheets. Click here to view >

SSI: One Pager. Click here to view >

SSI: Annotated Bibliography. Click here to view >

Calgary Health Region SSI Data Collection Tool. Click here to view >

SSI Videos. Click here to view >

WHO Surgical Safety Checklist. Click here to view >

Alex B. Haynes, M.D et al. A Surgical Safety Checklist to Reduce Morbidity and Mortality in a Global Population. The New England Journal of Medicine. 360:  491-499. January 29, 2009.
Click here to view >

Surgical Safety Checklist - Canadian Version. Click here to view >

Surgical checklist cuts complications by a third. Globe and Mail. January 14, 2009. Click here to view >

THE QHN VALUE

Last month, in a letter to all Ontario Hospitals, the Ministry reported that it will use the Safer Healthcare Now! definition for Surgical Site Infection prevention for total hip/ knee surgical patient indicators.

The Quality Healthcare Network, the organization leading Safer Healthcare Now! in Ontario was instrumental in influencing this decision, to allow hospitals to report on a single, common definition.

"Over the past many months, the Quality Healthcare Network has listened to the data reporting concerns of its Safer Healthcare Now! teams in Ontario, and has worked diligently to influence a common indicator definition for reporting SSI rates.

We are thrilled to report that working in partnership with the Ministry of Health, the Critical Care Secretariat, the Ontario Hospital Association and the Ontario Node of Safer Healthcare Now!, the government and the Critical Care Secretariat will use a common definition for reporting SSI rates in Ontario. This will ultimately reduce the burden to teams.”

- Cynthia Majewski, Executive Director, Quality Healthcare Network and Ontario Node Leader, Safer Healthcare Now!

There can be no greater champion for health system performance improvement in Ontario than you, quality improvement professionals working in patient safety, risk and quality improvement. And there is no greater champion for you than the Quality Healthcare Network. This is another good example of the value of membership - working for you to reduce the burden of reporting so you can focus on care.

Be part of an organization committed to providing quality improvement professionals like you with the tools you need to excel. Be part of Canada’s largest voluntary healthcare improvement network.

ABOUT US

The Quality Healthcare Network (QHN) is a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering the development and adoption of best practices by its members through education and shared improvement projects. Established in 1992 as the CQI Network, the network grew into the Quality Healthcare Network in 2003, a member-based organization, which now exceeds over 70 healthcare organizations that share the courage to move beyond status quo, inspired towards excellence in care and service. In 2005, the network became the Ontario lead of the Safer Healthcare Now! campaign, an ambitious pan-Canadian effort aimed at reducing the number of injuries and deaths related to adverse events, such as infections and medication incidents. For more information about QHN, visit the network website at www.qhn.ca.