Health News For Champlain
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Champlain LHIN
Quicker Access for Patients Needing Hip and Knee Replacements
Champlain LHIN Central Intake Program Improves Patient Experience
February 25, 2015 - The Champlain LHIN and its partners are helping more people receive faster access to hip and knee surgeries due to a central intake system that manages wait lists more efficiently. The process is part of a larger program resulting in better overall care for people with hip and knee joint conditions.
During the past several years, the LHIN has worked with hospitals in the Champlain region to create and optimize a central intake program. The effort has resulted in a more equal distribution of patients between surgeons. Further wait-time improvements resulted when all referring physicians participated in the central intake process.
In fact, as of December 2014, 88 per cent of people got their knee replacement procedure within six months, compared to 68 per cent two years earlier. For hip replacements, as of December 2014, 90 per cent received their surgery within the six-month target period compared to 72 per cent two years before.
All surgeons and primary care physicians in the Champlain region now use a standard referral form to direct their patients to the central intake program. Each patient is assigned a Referral Tracking System number and within a month of the referral, patients are seen at the assessment centre closest to their home.
Assessment centres are located at the Cornwall Community Hospital, Hôpital Montfort, and the Queensway Carleton Hospital. The Queensway centre also conducts assessments at the Pembroke Regional Hospital. At these centres, a specialized nurse or physiotherapist conducts a patient evaluation, provides education and outlines options.
Maureen Sly-Havey, project lead of the regional hip and knee replacement program, explains that approximately 40 per cent of all the people assessed do not actually require surgery. In the past, these patients would have waited roughly a year to be informed their condition was not operable. Now, thanks to an early assessment, patients receive a 45-minute information and education session where they can learn about alternate interventions such as exercise.
Patients are benefitting because they’re seen quickly and gain a clear understanding of what is going to happen next,” says Maureen, who is based at Queensway Carleton Hospital. “We are able to offer them information on managing their condition, and in the meantime we provide instructions to family physicians.
Carol McMillan was first referred to an assessment centre in 2013. Although she was told that she would benefit from knee surgery, she chose to wait in order to try other less drastic options and improved her overall health through weight loss and exercise. She tried several alternatives before deciding to go ahead with the surgery this year.
“Within a week of the initial total joint assessment appointment, I saw my surgeon, had my assessment and my one-on-one with physiotherapy,” says Carol. “The hospital has been great. My physio has been good. I like the fact that I can come to one centre. It was like one-stop shopping.”
If surgery is an option, patients are informed of surgical wait times and can choose a specific surgeon, a specific hospital in the region, or the first available surgeon.
“The central intake model has made an important difference at a time when the demand for hip and knee surgery has been increasing,” says Chantale LeClerc, CEO of the Champlain LHIN. “The central intake program has shortened wait times, and the entire process is more efficient and cost-effective because it ensures orthopedic surgeons only see patients who really need that specialty service.”
The number of referrals to the program rose from 4,665 to 6,658 between 2012 and 2014, an increase of 1,993 patients served. The Champlain LHIN provided roughly $894,000 in 2014-15.
The Champlain Regional Orthopedic Network led by Queensway Carleton Hospital CEO Tom Schonberg, and Dr. Guy Moreau, Chief of Staff and Orthopedic Surgeon at Hôpital Montfort have played a major role in the success of the project. The network is now planning to expand the central intake model to other orthopedic surgeries including foot, ankle, spine and shoulders.
“This program is an example of how Ontario’s health care system is putting patients first by providing faster access to the services they need,” says MPP Madeleine Meilleur (Ottawa-Vanier). “Together with the Champlain LHIN, we are ensuring that more people in Ottawa and throughout Eastern Ontario are getting hip and knee replacements within the six-month target. It’s an example of our hospitals and members of the health care team like physiotherapists and nurses working together to provide faster access to specialist care for families who need it.”
If you are a journalist needing more information, please contact our Media Line:
613-747-3250
Toll-free 1-866-902-5446 ext 3250
champlain.media@lhins.on.ca
For more information about the Regional Hip and Knee Replacement Program:
Maureen Sly-Havey, Project Lead
mslyhavey@qch.on.ca
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