Read more about the project here.
Seniors hospitalized for non-life-threatening conditions are at higher risk of confusion, complications and death compared to elders treated at home. Potentially avoidable hospitalizations (PAH) may occur if long-term care homes (LTCHs) staff do not identify early warning signs of illness, missing opportunities to modify care plans before residents are in crisis.
This project aimed to adapt and test the E-INTERACT tools for use in Canadian LTCHs to proactively identify residents at risk of transfer to emergency departments (ED) and/or death in the Greater Toronto Area and Calgary, with potential for spread across Canada.
This webinar will describe lessons learned throughout the research study, including challenges with implementation and barriers encountered for the use of the tools in the Canadian context.
Michelle Grinman, MD, FRCPC, MPH is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Section of General Internal Medicine at the University of Calgary and a General Internal Medicine Specialist with Alberta Health Services. She is also the Medical Lead for the Seniors, Palliative and Continuing Care portfolio in the Calgary Zone and the Medical Lead for the Complex Care Hub program. She has worked in both Toronto and Calgary on developing integrated healthcare delivery models of care for vulnerable elders and medically complex patients. She completed her MD from the University of Calgary, residency from the University of Alberta and a General Internal Medicine Fellowship at the University of Toronto. She has also completed a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University and a certificate in Quality Improvement from IDEAS in Ontario.
Greta Cummings, RN, PhD, FCAHS, FAAN is a member of the Canadian Institutes on Health Research (CIHR) Advisory Board for Cancer. She also leads the CLEAR OUTCOMES (Connecting Leadership, Education & Research) research program and within it the Older Persons’ Transitions in Care (OPTIC) research program which examines the quality of transitions of frail elderly clients across three care settings: Continuing Care facilities, Emergency Medical Services and Emergency Departments. In OPTIC, we aim to develop, implement and evaluate interventions to avoid unnecessary transitions for frail seniors and to improve those that must occur. Within the OPTIC program, numerous studies are underway, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Covenant Health National Centre of Excellence in Seniors Health and Wellness.