The past year has been a busy one for the Sunrise Health Region.
Region president and CEO Suann Laurent prepared a wide ranging report on activities; selected highlights are included here with permission.
Accreditation - During the week of November 1-6, Sunrise Health Region programs and facilities underwent an Accreditation Survey by Accreditation Canada. Sunrise Health Region met 95.8 per cent of 1,954 individual criteria and 96.6 per cent of high priority criteria. This is a great achievement and the region has made incredible improvements since the last accreditation.
Accreditation is a voluntary process that allows the health region to evaluate and improve the quality of our services, and to evaluate those services against national best practices. Surveys are conducted every four years. Unmet criteria and required organizational practices have been put into an action plan for follow up. Sunrise Health Region has raised the bar in quality and safety through our lean, and accreditation work and continues to improve services for our clients, every day.
CT Scanner - In 2015, the region received support to buy a new computed tomography (CT) scanner from the provincial government. The cost of a new CT scanner is estimated at $1.2 million. The Ministry of Health will fund 50 per cent of the replacement cost, and will continue to fund the operating costs associated with CT services. The Health Foundation of East Central Saskatchewan has committed to raise the remaining 50 per cent of the new CT scanner cost as part of its capital campaign. By Mid-March of 2016, the new CT scanner will be in place.
Lab Accreditation – The ten laboratories in Sunrise Health Region received on-site inspection in May of 2014 for the laboratory quality assurance program of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan. The process to achieve full laboratory accreditation requires 7,053 standards to be met. At this time, only one standard in one facility remains to be achieved.
Methadone Program - One year ago, Sunrise Health Region officially took over operation of the methadone program in Kamsack. The methadone program in Kamsack now includes support for the discontinuation of needle use, care and counseling to reduce risk of HIV and Hepatitis C, and help for those who no longer will benefit from methadone treatment to safely discontinue the treatment program.
Gentle Persuasion Approach (GPA) – Long Term Care (LTC) employees received education in Gentle Persuasion Approach (GPA) in 2015. Currently, over 850 LTC employees are now trained in GPA, helping caregivers to better understand and safely care for persons with dementia. GPA teaches staff how to use a client-centred, compassionate and gentle persuasive approach to respond respectfully to the challenging and aggressive behaviours which, at times, can be associated with dementia.
Geriatric Response Intervention Team (GRIT) – A geriatric response intervention team was created to support the care for clients and residents with brain injuries, dementia and other health conditions that can affect behavior.
Program Guidelines for Special Care Homes – Provincial Working Groups were established in 2015 to review all of the Program Guidelines for Special Care Homes. Sunrise has one or more representatives on each of the seven working groups. Roberta Wiwcharuk, Vice President of Integrated Health Services and Suzanne Beck, Director of Therapeutic Recreation, were both interviewed and videotaped for the educational training videos that will be used throughout the province for the Program Guidelines for Special Care Homes. The videos will be released and shared with all Sunrise Long Term Care employees in 2016.
Emergency Department Wait Time and Flow – The health care professionals and client representative on the Rapid Process Improvement Workshop # 12 team aimed to improve the experience of clients in the emergency department by reducing wait times and improving quality while accessing diagnostic services. During the RPIW, the participants revised laboratory and medical imaging requisition forms, developed work standards for thorough completion of the requisitions, created education materials to help clients prepare for tests, and reorganized laboratory and ultrasound areas to improve the flow of staff, clients and information.
Canora CEC and Health & Wellness Centre - On November 19, 2015, Canora celebrated the grand opening of the Health and Wellness Centre in the newly renovated space at Canora Hospital. The Canora project involved three components: the CEC model to stabilize emergency department coverage, extended hours of primary health care appointments, and construction of the Canora Health & Wellness Centre to bring the team together under one roof. Since the CEC model was implemented there have been no emergency department service interruptions, and primary health care appointments are more accessible with longer weekday hours and weekend appointment times available.
Family Resource Centre in Kamsack – The Families First program ended at the beginning of 2015 in Kamsack. Sunrise Health Region looked at ways that families in the Kamsack area could continue to be supported. The Kamsack Family Resource Centre was opened on October 6, 2015. The Centre is based on the Yorkton Family Resource Centre model and provides parenting classes, social interaction, nutrition education, and activities to support healthy families and early childhood development. The primary target population for the service are families with children five years of age and younger. A grand opening event for the Family Resource Centre will be held early in the New Year.
Healthy Beginnings Report - The Health Beginning Report was released in 2015. The Report recognizes that healthy development in young children, beginning with a mother’s health, lays the foundation for a lifetime of health, wellbeing, and success. The report was created by KidsFirst and Sunrise Health Region to help decision makers understand the level of vulnerability experienced by children in the health region. From 2007-2014 the average vulnerability rate for children in Sunrise Health Region was 30.1 per cent; which is slightly lower than the provincial 33 per cent. Kamsack, Preeceville and Yorkton areas have child vulnerability rates considerably higher than the provincial and regional averages. The health region will work in 2016 with these communities and other agencies to reduce risk factors for children.
Measles, Pertussis, and Low Immunization Rates - This year there were outbreaks of both Measles and Pertussis in the province. Pertussis, a serious infection of the respiratory (breathing) system, hit our region twice in 2015. Both illnesses can be prevented by a vaccine series given multiple times in childhood. In Sunrise Health Region, the childhood immunization rates for two year olds are lower than the provincial average. In 2016, a focus for Sunrise Health Region will be prevention of childhood illness by encouraging parents to immunize their children.
Mental Health - Sunrise Health Region has achieved the provincial wait time target for three of four triage levels for five different mental health and addictions services. The provincial target is that by March of 2017, 85 per cent of persons seeking mental health and addictions services be triaged and seen within appropriate timeframes. Sunrise Health Region has met the target for all triage levels with the exception of the moderate child & youth triage level which is at 82 per cent. With vacant positions recently filled in child and youth services, we expect this last target to soon be met. A new computerized system was installed this year to help clinicians assess what people need for services and to schedule them for that care. The use of Telehealth throughout the region is helping to reduce travel for clients and increases access to consultation services. Suicide prevention was an additional focus for our mental health and addictions services team this past year, and a framework and protocol have been implemented to identify and help persons at risk.
The Yorkton Milk Drop - The Sunrise Health Region and NorthernStar Mothers Milk Bank opened a human milk depot (drop) in October, 2015. Milk Drop locations allow donor mothers to safely and conveniently drop off their milk. The Yorkton Milk Drop, which is located on the Maternity Ward of the Yorkton Regional Health Centre, ensures the safe handling, storage and transport of donated human milk. Milk donations from mothers here in Sunrise Health Region are safely shipped to NorthernStar Mothers Milk Bank in Calgary.
Saulteaux Pelly Agency Health Initiative Steering Committee – The work of the Saulteaux Pelly Agency Health Initiative continued in 2015. The Steering Committee, which includes representatives from Sunrise Health Region, College of Physicians and Surgeons, First Nations communities, the Saskatchewan government and the Federal government, discuss health concerns and are working on strategies to improve the health status of First Nations people living in the area. One of the committee’s priorities was addiction services and the use of methadone assisted recovery. A Nurse Navigator was hired by Sunrise Health region to work in Kamsack to provide assessments and therapeutic interventions for clients and their families and to build relationships to address the emotional and social needs of clients. A Nurse Practitioner was also employed by Sunrise Health Region to hold Women’s Health Clinics once a month on each of The Key, Cote and Keeseekoose First Nations. The work of the Saulteaux Pelly Agency Health Initiative steering Committee will be continuing in 2016 with the collaborative effort of all parties at the table.
Board Membership - On October 5, 2015, the Government of Saskatchewan announced appointments to the board of directors, Sunrise Regional Health Authority. Serving as a member of the Sunrise Regional Health Authority since March of 2007, Lawrence Chomos of Esterhazy was reappointed as Chairperson. Serving the region since April of 2011, Donald Rae of Yorkton was reappointed as Vice-Chairperson. Also returning were Sunrise Regional Health Authority members: Dave Schappert of Langenburg, Shirley Wolfe-Keller of Invermay and Gordon Gendur of Yorkton. Dave Schappert has served on the regional health authority since February of 2009. Shirley Wolfe-Keller and Gordon Gendur have served since May of 2012. New to the Sunrise Regional Health Authority are: Garth Harris of Preeceville, Glenn Leontowich of Ituna, Deborah Schmidt of Yorkton, and Bob Drayer of Sturgis. Leaving the Board in 2015 were Walter Streelasky, Doris Kopelchuk, and Janet Hill. Walter Streelasky had served since May of 2006, and Doris Kopelchuk since February of 2009. Janet Hill is a founding member of Sunrise Regional Health Authority, and had served as a board member since April of 2002. In addition, the new appointments fill a vacancy from July of 2014 when Murray Dalton of Preeceville retired as a board member, a position he had held since May of 2012.
Dr. Bishop 50 years of Service – In 2015, Dr. Michael Bishop celebrated 50 years of providing medical services to Kamsack as a family physician. To celebrate, Sunrise Health Region and the Town of Kamsack held a come-and-go event in Kamsack on March 31, 2015.
Infrastructure Projects around the Region:
Canora Hospital
• The Canora Health & Wellness Centre was created by renovation of a wing of the Canora Hospital and areas of the hospital were painted.
Centennial Special Care Home (Esterhazy)
• Kitchen renovations were completed.
Ituna Pioneer Health Care Centre
• Roof replacement project was completed by Southland Roofing in September.
Kamsack Hospital & Nursing Home
• A new generator was installed on April 30, 2015.
Lakeside Manor Care Home
• Five new windows were installed
• Cladding of walk-in cooler was completed.
• A new Roam Alert System was installed and tested
Langenburg Health Centre
• A new generator and transfer switch was installed.
Regional Laundry
• In 2015, the Sunrise Regional Laundry facility closed as Saskatchewan transitioned to a provincial laundry solution. Mitigating the impacts on employees was a high priority. The region engaged both the staff and unions in this effort. Due to identified safety requirements, the planned closure was accelerated and the facility ceased operations on June 19, 2015. Affected staff continued with their transition options planned for the original closure date and soiled linen was sent to the K-Bro plant in Edmonton until the new Regina facility opened on September 14, 2015. Personal laundry for long term care residents continues to be done within the facilities in the region. The machines at the regional laundry were decommissioned, and disassembled, with cleanup to continue into 2016.
St. Anthony’s Hospital
• A new air conditioning chiller system was installed in August
• Wall repairs and painting began in October.
St. Peter’s Hospital
• The utilidor project at St. Peter’s Hospital was successfully completed which involved the water main being relocated around the perimeter of the hospital, instead of through the crawlspace.
Yorkton Public Health Building
• Renovations were completed in October so that the Staff Relations and the Workplace Health and Safety teams could move from leased space on Circlebrooke Drive to space previously occupied by the Women’s Wellness Clinic in the Public Health building. This adjustment in accommodations will result in a savings of $50,000.
Yorkton & District Nursing Home
• The dishwasher project at Yorkton & District Nursing Home was completed.
Yorkton Regional Health Centre
• Histology/Autopsy Room renovations were completed.
•The new food trayline was installed in the kitchen in November.
