Spectrum Collaborates with ETHP on their BPSO Journey
Spectrum Health Care recently collaborated with the East Toronto Health Partners (ETHP), the Ontario Health Team (OHT) serving East Toronto, in their journey to become a RNAO Best Practice Spotlight Organization OHT. Working together with ETHP member organizations, we were part of a cross-sector team focused on the implementation of Best Practice Guidelines related to falls prevention and transitions in care.
According to Government of Canada data, falls remain the leading cause of injury-related hospitalizations among Canadian seniors and it is estimated that up to 50% of older people who fall sustain an injury after discharge with between 10% and 15% requiring readmission to hospital. Community nurses see the impact of falls firsthand and understand the risks for patients when transitioning from hospital to home. As such, they can offer crucial insights for the co-design and implementation of guidelines related to falls prevention and transitions in care.
Leveraging partners’ community nursing expertise, with strong involvement from our team at Spectrum, the ETHP BPSO OHT team established a common set of patient education tools on falls prevention to be shared across all sectors. Taking a population health approach, the team also had direct dialogue with community members and service users, as well as staff groups to understand the patient transition experience and gaps in existing education and information on falls prevention. From this learning, a falls prevention tool kit was developed as a resource to support ETHP partner organizations to assess and bolster their existing Falls Prevention Programs.
In addition to being used at discharge by Michael Garron Hospital – organizations within the ETHP including Spectrum, VHA, WoodGreen, South Riverdale Community Health Centre and others are using these tools as an education resource for patients and staff.