Smarter health care

Think of it as travelling a smooth, uninterrupted path to better health, in contrast to an existing system that jerks patients from one type of care into another.

Common sense would dictate that a seamless approach is a better way to proceed. And Ontario health officials, to their credit, have announced an expansion of “bundled care” teams to deliver just such a system.

The approach was pioneered at a Hamilton centre and was shown to dramatically cut hospital stays, emergency department visits and readmission rates. That generated lower medical costs and, most important of all, soaring patient satisfaction.

The key is maintaining a connection. People enrolled in the Integrated Comprehensive Care Project of the St. Joseph’s Health System in Hamilton aren’t simply passed from one service to another.

Whether they’re in a hospital bed, an out-patient department or at home, the team handling their case remains the same. And it includes a key player: an integrated care co-ordinator, generally available day or night, who people can call as concerns arise.

Instead of being handed off and left struggling on their own to navigate different departments and types of care, patients stay in touch with their expert team through the co-ordinator, usually a nurse or personal support worker. A hospital summary of results so far concludes: “We are proving that this is a faster, cheaper, better way of delivering care.”

Picking up on that success, Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins this past week announced the creation of six new teams to operate in southern and central west Ontario. Three teams are to handle chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and heart failure, while the others will be dedicated to either heart surgery patients, stroke care, or providing electronic visits. If successful, the approach will likely be expanded even further.

Launched in 2012, the St. Joseph’s project provides care for patients receiving surgery for lung cancer, undergoing hip or knee replacement, and those struggling with a chronic disease.

Results have been dramatic. As reported by the Star’s Tara Deschamps, hospital stays for lung patients have dropped by up to 33 per cent while post-discharge emergency room visits have been cut in half. Readmission rates are down 56 per cent, and thousands of dollars are being saved on treating every patient.

This is precisely the sort of patient-centred innovation that our health-care system needs.