Worst June on record for ‘hallway medicine’ at Ontario hospitals
Friday, September 6th, 2019
Hospital overcrowding for the month of June hit a record high this year, according to the Ontario Hospital Association… the sector has been in austerity mode for more than a decade… At the same time, more than 4,500 patients were occupying hospital beds during the month even though they no longer required hospital care.
Tags: budget, Health, standard of living
Posted in Health Delivery System | No Comments »
From ear wax treatment to sinus scans: The 11 medical procedures to be delisted or restricted under OHIP
Thursday, August 22nd, 2019
House calls to non-housebound patients, outdated fertility testing and unnecessary earwax removal are among 11 health services being delisted or restricted from OHIP coverage, a committee tasked with modernizing Ontario’s taxpayer-funded insurance plan has announced. Coverage for the services will be affected as part of a major update to the OHIP Schedule of Benefits aimed at freeing up money for higher-value physician services, increasing access to those services and cutting wait-lists
Tags: budget, Health
Posted in Health Policy Context | No Comments »
Ontarians pay their doctors $12 billion a year. So why can’t they know where their taxpayer money is going?
Sunday, July 28th, 2019
“We have a great shortage of doctors in needed areas like geriatrics, rehabilitation medicine and family medicine, at least in part because those doctors are underpaid relative to other specialties,” Glazier said. “Having the right mix of specialties to serve the population matters to everyone who cares about our health system and population health.”
Tags: budget, economy, Health, ideology, mental Health, rights, standard of living
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A glimpse into the future of health care in Ontario
Sunday, March 3rd, 2019
St. Joseph’s Healthcare in Hamilton, specifically at its Integrated Comprehensive Care (ICC) program… started as a pilot back in 2012. Known then as the “bundled care” program, it was designed to connect surgical patients with a single team of clinicians who could care for them before, during and after their operations… It has resulted in a savings of up to $4,000 per patient, a 30 per cent reduction in emergency department visits and 30 per cent reduction in hospital readmissions, a savings of more than 30,000 bed days and an increase in patient satisfaction, according to the hospital.
Tags: budget, Health, mental Health, standard of living
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Ontario government quietly ordered autism therapy providers to stop admitting kids from wait-list last September
Sunday, February 24th, 2019
The provincial government quietly ordered autism service providers last September to stop admitting new children for therapy and to keep parents in the dark about the move… Internal documents — from the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services and senior administrators of nine regional service providers — state that the 23,000-child wait-list for autism therapy was closed because of “financial pressures.”
Tags: budget, disabilities, Health, ideology, mental Health, participation, standard of living, youth
Posted in Governance Delivery System | No Comments »
Doctors get new contract with province after 4-year battle
Wednesday, February 20th, 2019
… the board ordered that the two sides strike an “appropriateness working group” to eliminate or restrict inappropriate or overused physician services — $100 million worth in 2019-20 and another $360 million worth the following year… The arbitration decision provides doctors with redress, eliminating most but not all of the fee cuts imposed by the province in recent years, effective this coming April. As well, it awards physicians with increases of 0.75 per cent for 2017; 1.25 per cent for 2018; 1 per cent for 2019; and 1 per cent for 2020.
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, mental Health
Posted in Health Delivery System | No Comments »
Toronto home-care program keeps patients out of hospital
Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012
6 August 2012
The Integrated Client Care Program allows seniors at risk of hospitalization to stay in their own homes as long as possible with strong support from health-care professionals and community service providers…. [It] also provides help to the oft-overlooked caregiver… With a rapidly aging population and a $15-billion deficit, the provincial government wants to see more programs like this. The Liberals called for more home visits by doctors in the last election and they hiked spending for community health services by 4 per cent in the last provincial budget.
Tags: budget, Health, mental Health, standard of living
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Family doctors should work where province decides, health conference told
Sunday, June 10th, 2012
Jun 09 2012
Family doctors should no longer able to work as solo practitioners nor should they be allowed to set up shop wherever they want, a conference on health reform has been told… There are up to 1,500 family physicians working as solo practitioners in Ontario, a large portion of them in the Greater Toronto Area. Most are older and have spent decades practising this way… Solo practitioners and their patients are at a disadvantage because they have access to fewer resources… They are isolated from where all the resources are and they often look after really needy patients
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, rights, standard of living
Posted in Health Delivery System | No Comments »
Ontario creates online donor registry
Monday, June 13th, 2011
June 13, 2011
After five years and three official recommendations, the provincial government will allow Ontarians to register as organ donors online. The website, beadonor.ca, is up and running… By making it easier for people to consent, the province hopes to increase the number of donors.
Tags: Health, standard of living
Posted in Health Delivery System | 1 Comment »
Home-care services can’t keep up, audit finds
Tuesday, December 7th, 2010
Dec. 6, 2010
Auditor General Jim McCarter devoted a chapter of his annual report to home care, finding that the sector is unable to keep up with obligations in providing personal support, homemaking and therapy services. The sector doesn’t have the financial resources to meet the demand for personal support and homemaking services, the report noted. These services are often required by seniors and people discharged from hospital. And a shortage of professionals in occupational therapy, physiotherapy and speech-language therapy is resulting in waiting lists for their services
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, standard of living
Posted in Child & Family Delivery System | No Comments »
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