Starting October 29, hospitals in North Bay, Sault Ste Marie and West Parry Sound will have access to a common shared health information system.
It's called the "ONE Initiative" a system for the northeast and one chart for each patient on the system.
Physicians and departmental teams from the North Bay Regional Health Centre (NBRHC), Sault Area Hospital and West Parry Sound Health Centre have been working together for two years to plan, build and provide training to implement a common system that will improve the way patients receive care.
For the first few weeks, while staff at the hospital become accustomed to the new system, it is anticipated that some processes may take longer than normal.
“To minimize potential delays, the hospital is adding extra staff in certain areas,” explains Dr. Tim Percival, Chief of Emergency Medicine. “However, patients can be assured that they will continue to receive the best care possible during this transition to the new system.”
Tips for patients wanting to minimize non-urgent visits to the hospital during this time include checking prescriptions and making sure renewals are done through your primary care provider or pharmacy; and familiarizing yourself with the options available for non-urgent care, like Telehealth Ontario or walk-in clinics.
“As always, in the case of an emergency, please do not hesitate, and go straight to the Emergency Department,” Percival says.
“Our partnership puts patients first. The shared system improves patient safety and provides a better care experience for patients,” says Paul Heinrich, President of NBRHC, and Chair of the ONE Executive Steering Committee. “Clinicians also benefit through a more efficient workflow, real-time notifications, and complete and timely access to a patient’s story between the three hospitals.
"We're very excited about the promise of this new system and how it will transform care," Heinrich told CKAT. "The system is very modern. Our old technology system is more than 25 years old. This is a very advanced system that approximately 60 per cent of Ontario hospitals use."
“Physicians will now have faster access to the information they need to make important patient care decisions,” says Dr. Kevin Gagne, Chief Medical Information Officer, NBRHC. “This advanced system offers regional best practice content and clinical support tools to improve patient safety and transitions of care.”
