The Transition to Home program is housed in a special 24-bed unit at the hospital. It provides restorative care to improve the day-to-day functioning of frail seniors who have completed treatment but are not yet ready to go home. Because seniors often lose strength and mobility while hospitalized, restorative care is key to recovery and can often prevent premature admissions to long-term care homes.
The program is just one example of how the LHIN is helping to improve care for seniors, making their transitions in the health system as seamless as possible. The Champlain LHIN provided $2.75 million to the Queensway Carleton Hospital to fund the program.
"With the Champlain LHIN's support for this project, we have been able to send many of our frail elderly patients home with the appropriate supports," says Tom Schonberg, President & CEO of Queensway Carleton Hospital.
"This is what our patients and their families want and this is what is best for their recovery and their overall health. In addition, it saves the health care system money as these patients recover quicker in an atmosphere where they are at ease and comfortable with their loved ones."
The hospital has achieved early success, roughly ten patients are discharged home from the unit every week. Without the program in place, many of these patients would have waited for a longer period of time in hospital before being discharged to a long-term care home.
"Seniors really treasure their independence, and want to live in their homes for as long as possible," said Alex Munter, Champlain LHIN CEO. "We can make that happen by thinking differently about what our health care system is supposed to deliver. I congratulate the Queensway Carleton Hospital staff for their innovation and initiative."
Launched in December 2010, Transition to Home is a collaborative effort between the Queensway Carleton Hospital, the Champlain Community Care Access Centre (CCAC), and the Champlain LHIN.
The Champlain CCAC plays a crucial role in assessing patients, as well as determining which community services are available to allow patients to return home safely. For example, one elderly patient fractured her hip at home and was admitted to the Queensway Carleton Hospital, where she had surgery. After her treatment ended, she stayed in hospital waiting for a long-term care home.
When the Transition to Home program opened, this patient was able to receive specialized physiotherapy, occupational therapy, rehabilitative and geriatric nursing. (The unit even has a home-like kitchen where patients can improve their skills).
After about a month, she was discharged home with enhanced support from the Champlain CCAC. The program is gaining attention among seniors' champions in our region.
"It's encouraging to see these changes happening as we continue to re-engineer our health care system to align with a senior-friendly care framework.
The framework is designed to improve care, reduce inappropriate use of resources, and improve patient and family satisfaction," says Kelly Milne, Program Director of the Regional Geriatric Program of Eastern Ontario.
"Restorative care is one strategy that promotes a more age-appropriate response to the unique health needs of the older patient population."
Source http://www.emcbarrhaven.ca/
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