The Windsor Regional Hospital (WRH) has expanded a program designed to help patients avoid going back to the hospital after being discharged.
Hospital to Home is now also accepting patients from Erie Shores Health Care and Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, according to WRH Clinical Vice President Kristi Cecile during a board meeting on Thursday.
“The program expansion occurred on April 27,” Cecile said.
“And in this short time, we have successfully been able to onboard one patient from Hôtel-Dieu Grace Hospital and two from Erie Shores.”
The aim is to bring in 15-20 patients every weekday, she added.
Hospital to Home started at Windsor Regional in October, backed by $2 million in funding from the provincial government.
This initiative offers support for eight to 16 weeks for patients who need at least two services before they can be discharged. This could involve care from a nurse, personal support worker, dietician or physiotherapist.
A not-for-profit social enterprise called SE Health provides all these services.
Once they onboard the patients, the hospital takes over their care... Thehospital still collaborates with Hôtel-Dieu [and] Erie Shores through calls every two days so they’re aware of how their patients are doing [on] the program and ensure that they transition well through it while being rehabilitated at home,” Cecile said.
“Then we do work closely with Ontario Health at Home to transition them if that’s necessary.”...
No all hospitals have access to their own Hospital-to-Home program so teaming up with Erie Shores and Hôtel-Dieu helps cut down on hospital admissions and emergency visits overall,” remarked WRH CEO Kristin Kennedy.
A major focus of this initiative is reducing alternative level of care (ALC) cases-patients who no longer need acute care but often wait for homecare services before returning home.
Cecile mentioned that since launching this program in October there’s been a noticeable change in ALC patient numbers; however she did not have exact figures right after the meeting.A streamlined and tailored service, hospital official says
This creates a more efficient and customized program compared to the province’s regular home and community care program, Ontario Health at Home, which coordinates care through various third-party providers, Cecile explained. “The [SE Health] providers work really closely with Windsor Regional Hospital for follow-up calls, ensuring that the eight-to-16-week wrap-around service is continued and can be adjusted whenever needed with our patients in the community,” she said. Hospital officials informed CBC in February that their goal was to enroll 230 patients into Hospital to Home by the end of March. In reality, they enrolled 242, Cecile shared during a news conference following the board meeting. The new target is now set at enrolling 399 patients by the end of March 2027, she mentioned. Staff members with WRH’s partners are currently trained to evaluate patients for the program, Cecile noted. Windsor Regional then reviews referrals and communicates with both patients and their families.Source link
