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Growing with Confidence FRASER HEALTH REPORT TO THE COMMUNITY 2005–06

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Page 1: Growing with Confi dence€¦ · and feel on top of my game. There are lots of different diets out there, and the best ones depend on eating a variety of healthy foods. This particular

Growing with Confi dence FRASER HEALTH REPORT TO THE COMMUNITY 2005–06

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Thank you for taking time to read our Report to the Community. We are immensely proud of the innovation, commitment, professionalism and tenacity of our physicians, employees and volunteers. They are our “community” – and more than any building, technology or program, it’s our people who make Fraser Health distinct. In effect, this is a report from our community to yours. It’s our way of sharing with you some of the outstanding initiatives underway in Fraser Health, one of Canada’s largest and fastest growing health authorities.

Our vision is “Better health, Best in health care.” There is a strong relationship between the good health of those who live in our communities, and the ability of the health care system to meet the demands of a rapidly growing and aging population. Healthy nutrition, physical activity and a smoke-free lifestyle are choices you can make. Ideally, these choices may mean you will enjoy such good health that you rarely need to call, for example, on our busy Emergency Departments or other acute care services. That helps us to focus on those who unexpectedly face health challenges and need to know they can count on Fraser Health’s integrated network of health services to meet their needs with timely, effective care and services.

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR AND CEO

Keith Anderson (seated) and Keith Purchase

From primary care, health promotion and illness prevention through accessible acute care, mental health and addictions programs, and home and community care to compassionate and effective care at the end of life, Fraser Health may touch your life, or the lives of your family, friends and neighbours in a myriad of ways. In this report, you will meet just a few of the 21,000 Fraser Health employees, 2,200 physicians and an estimated 4,200 volunteers, all intent on ensuring that when you need us, we’ll be there for you.

Keith Purchase

Chair, Board of Directors

Fraser Health

Keith Anderson

Interim President, CEO

Fraser Health

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We asked our employees to tell us what they do to stay healthy and fi t. Here’s what a few of them had to say.

Find a walking or exercise buddy at work and get moving! Not only will you feel better, ultimately you will look better.

CINDY L. DAWSON, Medical Administration, MSA Hospital

Last year I stopped eating anything white, except white meat. No white sugar, white fl our, white rice or potatoes. I have lost 35 lbs, gained a lot of energy and feel on top of my game. There are lots of different diets out there, and the best ones depend on eating a variety of healthy foods. This particular approach seems to work for me.

KATIE HAMMER, Medical Laboratory Technologist, Mission Memorial Hospital Laboratory

I always have lots of fruits and vegetables and nuts on hand. I go to the gym, and I bike with my son. I also do yoga and mediation, which helps me stay in the present and this helps me avoid unhealthy eating.

NINA BAINS

Casual Unit Clerk, Peace Arch Hospital

I used to be one of those people who couldn’t run 10 minutes without getting winded... so one

year I decided to start running. I signed up for a short run, and over the years have “built up” my endurance.

DEANNA TAN

Registered Dietitian, Public Health

Maple Ridge

I follow the Weight-Watchers’ points system,

and bring point-friendly snacks to work instead of snacking on the high-point cookies and cakes.

JANE KUPIAK, RN, Home Care Nurse, Burnaby Home Care

I pay attention to buying local produce. I take the SkyTrain when I am not on call, and I am riding my bike around town for daily chores and am also

spending time on the mountain bike trails.

DR. RARDI VAN HEEST

Trauma Surgeon, Royal Columbian Hospital

I am eating more fruits and vegeta-bles with a better mix of carbohydrates and

protein. I am also eating less junk food

and am exercising more – riding my mountain bike and skiing.

DR. TONY TAYLOR, Vice President, Quality and Patient Safety

HEALTHY LIVING

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RECRUITING THE BEST

Like the rest of Canada,

Fraser Health is facing a

shortage of experienced

critical care nurses. We

are meeting this challenge

with several innovative

recruiting initiatives.

For starters, our recruiting

team streamlines the hiring

process by pre-screening

job applicants. Managers

receive background infor-

mation, a skills checklist and

sometimes reference details

for job applicants. This

helps them make smart

hiring decisions quickly.

continued on page 8

Celeste Simpson

I had an interview at the Hiring Fair and found out that same day that I was hired to be a surgical undergrad

nurse at Peace Arch Hospital. It’s been a great learning experience. I’m excited to go to work in the morning.

The staff get along so well, and they appreciate having an undergrad. I really hope to get hired on here when

I graduate next spring. — CELESTE SIMPSON, Surgical Undergrad Nurse

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I was diagnosed with renal failure about a year after my son was born. I had been diabetic for 20 years and it

was a rough pregnancy, so my kidneys started to deteriorate after his birth. It’s not a pleasant thing to happen,

but it’s not the end of the world. I go to the Renal Centre three times a week, and it takes about fi ve hours

including travel. It’s a quiet place with really nice staff and I get to relax. — ANGELA WONG, Hemodialysis Patient

ENHANCING PATIENT AND FAMILY CARE

A new Renal Centre at

Royal Columbian Hospital

that opened in May of this

year is providing enhanced

care and a more inviting

environment for patients

and their families who

spend many hours in the

unit each week.

“The new facility provides

more privacy for patients

and a better workspace for

our team,” says Lorraine

Prysunka, Manager of the

Renal Program. “And it’s not

just about the patients. We

also have family members

who spend many hours here

each week.“

continued on page 8

Nurse Rebecca Yiek and Angela Wong

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FAMILY BIRTHING UNIT GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND

Over the past year, a team

of 160 doctors, nurses and

midwives in the Family

Birthing Unit at Surrey

Memorial Hospital

collaborated to improve

patient care and safety

by adopting the highly

regarded national Managing

Obstetrical Risk Effi ciently

Program (MoreOB). The

Surrey Memorial Hospital

team is the fi rst in BC to

adopt this approach.

continued on page 9

My experience of having a baby at Surrey Memorial was very good. When my labour didn’t progress and there

was concern about the baby’s position, I got straight answers to my questions right away. That’s exactly what

I needed at a time like that. The nurses were so helpful and I felt I was very well cared for the whole time.

— HARVIR SANGHA, New Mom

Harvir Sangha with baby Saveena and members of the MoreOB Team

Left to right:Lesley Smith, Maternal Program ManagerRuth Kerr, Clinical Nurse EducatorLynne Palmer, Clinical Nurse SpecialistDr. Duncan Price, Chief of Obstetrics

and Gynaecology, co-chair of the MoreOB program

Monica Nicol, Clinical Nurse Educator,co-chair of the MoreOB program

Kathy Clare, Clinical Resource Nurse

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I left my home when I couldn’t manage on my own because of health problems. Moving to Seton Villa was the

best move I ever made. It was hard giving up my home, but I’m blessed to be in a place where people are so

loving and caring. I get medical help when I need it, but I still have some independence. I believe I wouldn’t be

alive today if I wasn’t living in such a good place. — DOROTHY REYSE, Resident, Seton Villa, Burnaby

PROVIDING HOUSING OPTIONS THAT BETTER MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR SENIORS

Assisted living is an

increasingly important

way of providing care

to our community’s aging

population. An alternative

to living at home or long-

term care, assisted living

gives seniors independence

while also providing

essential supports.

continued on page 10

Dorothy Reyse (centre) and fellow Seton Villa residents, Gladys Bjornson and Allan Anderson

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Another successful recruiting initiative is our annual Hiring Fair which attracts more than 400 nursing students. Again, the job candidates are pre-screened so that Fraser Health managers who attend the one-day event are able to interview and hire on the spot. This year, 270 students were hired through the Hiring Fair. As students gain experience with Fraser Health in summer jobs, they are more likely to return for full-time employment.

A recent recruit in the Undergraduate Nursing program, Celeste Simpson, said she chose Peace Arch Hospital after doing a practicum there. “I really liked the community feel of the hospital and the way the staff were so eager to help the students,” she says. “The people here really seem to enjoy each other, and that makes it a great place to work.”

To attract qualifi ed health providers from across Canada and abroad, Fraser Health also conducts interviews by videocon-ference. A team of managers from

several Fraser Health sites will interview pre-screened candidates. The managers then decide which candidate is suited for which site. By working together to make these decisions, the managers avoid the wasted time and energy of competing for limited human resources.

Making Fraser Health a Better Place to Work

Hospitals can be a stressful place, especially for new employees. In fact, it used to be that in some cases a new nurse would be crying within three weeks. Thanks to our mentorship program, and the undergrad and new grad programs, this is a thing of the past as new hires are welcomed in a supportive unit culture.

“These programs allow new staff to grow into the role,” explains Barb Mildon, Chief Nurse Executive and Vice President, Professional Practice and Integration. “In the past, a new grad came into an often overwhelming environment and started cold.”

Other programs in Fraser Health that make it a great place to work include:

• Respectful Workplace• Above and Beyond Awards• Leadership and Development• Performance Planning• Interactive and multifaceted

communications • Prevention and Early Active

Return-to-Work Safely (PEARS) program

The family room, with couches, an electric fi replace and TV, creates a nice space for people who are forced by illness to make Royal Columbian Hospital almost their second home.

The Renal Centre houses two dialysis programs and a supplementary chronic disease management program, all of which previously had been in separate locations within the hospital. Floor space has more than doubled, and each of the bedside dialysis stations has more space to accom-modate machinery, caregivers and family members.

A multidisciplinary team of kidney specialists (nephrologists), pharmacists, dietitians, social workers, technicians and nurses currently help 145-150 patients maintain

RECRUITING THE BESTcontinued from page 4

ENHANCING PATIENT AND FAMILY CARE continued from page 5

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the best quality of life given their life-threatening condition. As a major referral centre for Fraser Health, the Royal Columbian Hospital Renal Centre serves patients throughout the region, from Burnaby to Hope.

The Renal Centre’s fl exible hours are a huge benefi t to patients such as Angela Wong. She books her three weekly hemodialysis treatments for evenings and weekends so her husband can take care of their son.

“It’s such a benefi t to be able to book my appointments for when my husband is home from work,” she says. “The staff are all so nice and it’s a peaceful place, so it’s not bad at all.”

Meeting a Growing Need

The population of patients with end stage renal failure is growing provincially at an average rate of six to 10 per cent per year. This growth results from an aging population, the growing incidence of diabetes and the number of people surviving heart disease and other diseases which can affect kidney function.

The Fraser Health Renal Program is a comprehensive integrated program that attempts to address individual patient needs from the early stages of renal failure through to end-stage renal disease. The program is supported by a team of nine nephrologists who work collaboratively to provide care across the continuum to all Fraser Health renal patients.

Developed by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada, the Managing Obstetrical Risk Effi ciently program improves patient safety by integrating evidence-based practice*. It focuses on teaching all health care professionals involved in the Family Birthing Unit to respond in the same way. All members of the team take a web-based learning program and a comprehensive workshop.

The result is better consistency in patient care, according to Monica Nicol, Clinical Nurse Educator in the Family Birthing Unit. “The MoreOB program puts the patient at the centre of the care,” says Nicol. “Since we are all learning together, we have a common language and better dialogue among all members of the team.”

For patients such as Harvir Sangha, the care of the MoreOB team reduced the worry of a diffi cult labour. “The doctor explained my options, and I felt that I was well-informed the whole time,”

she explains. “After I had the C section and Saveena was born, I could hold her right away, and my husband was there with us. That was such a great experience.”

For more information about MoreOB: www.moreob.com/en/whatWeDo/overview.html

* Evidence-based medicine is the conscientious, explicit and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients.

Inspiring the Best in our Employees and Physicians

Throughout Fraser Health, there are people who give that little bit extra and achieve the extraordinary. “Above and Beyond” is a new Fraser Health program that celebrates outstanding contributions by our employees, physicians and volunteers.

The fi rst Above and Beyond awards, announced in July 2006, were given to 16 individuals or teams in various disciplines. The MoreOB Team at Surrey Memorial Hospital was one of the recipients.

For more informationwww.fraserhealth.ca/About/OurPeople/AboveandBeyond

FAMILY BIRTHING UNIT GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND continued from page 6

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In assisted living, people live in separate apartment units but have services such as personal care, hospitality, an emergency call system and recreation opportunities available.

Through a partnership with BC Housing, Fraser Health’s assisted living units are affordable – residents pay 70 per cent of their after-tax income.

Assisted living reduces emergency hospital visits that can result when someone is failing at home. And since residents have a variety of support services, it prevents early

entry into residential care. This relatively new housing option is growing rapidly in Fraser Health. In 2003, there were fewer than 90 assisted living spots in the region; by the end of 2006, there will be more than 1,000 units.

For seniors like 89-year-old Dorothy Reyse who lives in Seton Villa in Burnaby, assisted living is an ideal combination of indepen-dence and support.

“I get good care here and it’s a lovely community,” she says. “We have more fun with our walkers in the elevators – when a bunch of us get in there, we just roar with laughter!”

PROVIDING HOUSING OPTIONS THAT BETTER MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR SENIORS continued from page 7

Expanding to Meet Growing Needs

Total assisted living capacity added in 2005/06

Seton Villa, Burnaby 28 units

Kinsmen Retirement Centre, Delta 68 units

Courtyard Terraces, Burnaby 40 units

Cascades, Chilliwack 45 units

Mennonite Benevolent Society, Abbotsford 41 units

Total 222 units

Total capacity in Fraser Health as of March 31, 2006 572 units

Target for Fraser Health by 2008 1,401 units

10

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Serving Our Population Population 2006

% ofpopulation

2009projected

0 – 18 yrs 340,252 23% 338,469

19 – 44 yrs 552,666 37% 563,331

45 – 64 yrs 397,004 27% 439,353

65 + 191,649 13% 212,309

Total 1,481,571 100% 1,553,462

Activity Profi le 2005–06

Inpatient admissions 93,573

Emergency Room visits 411,174

Inpatient Operation Room visits 30,261

Surgical day care visits 50,628

Babies born 13,386

Residential care beds 7,419

Mental health inpatient days 66,548

All health authorities are required to balance their budgets according to their performance agreements with the provincial government. Fraser Health completed fi scal year 2005–06 in a favourable position with a $0.2 million surplus, which is essentially on plan compared to our overall budget of $1.8 billion.

In 2005–06, Fraser Health received increased funding and the opportunity to invest in priority programs and services. Our challenge in future years will be to meet the increasing demands of providing high quality health services to a rapidly growing and aging population within the limitations of our human and fi nancial resources.

Fraser Health’s audited fi nancial statements and additional budget and fi nancial information are for public interest:www.fraserhealth.ca/About/BudgetandFinancials/default.htm

FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY

11

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DEALING WITH MENTAL HEALTH AND ADDICTIONS

From street kids to

respected professionals,

substance abuse touches

all segments of society.

One of the most urgent

problems today is crystal

meth use.

“Crystal methamphetamine

is easy to access, cheap and

very dirty,” says Mike Kosty,

a Counsellor at Impact

Youth Addiction/Prevention

Services in Abbotsford. It

creates a chemical rush that

literally fries nerves and

may result in aggressive

behaviour.

continued on page 16

When I was doing crystal meth I turned into a person I didn’t want to be. I lost my family, I lost all my friends,

I lost my son... I lost myself. Since I’ve been clean, I’m taking life one day at a time. Once or twice a week, I drop

in at Impact and have a good talk with Mike. I’ll really let loose, let all my stresses out and leave with a smile

on my face. It’s awesome. I’m more hopeful about the future now because I know I won’t be using crystal

meth again. — VANESSA ALEXANDER, a Client of the Impact Youth Addiction/Prevention Services Clinic in Abbotsford

Vanessa Alexander and Mike Kosty

12

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I’m a heart patient. I’ve had a stroke and I’m dealing with high blood pressure and high cholesterol, so it can get

complicated. Dr. Fagan of the Murrayville Family Practice is excellent and very knowledgeable about the heart.

I like Anjie’s holistic approach to medicine – she treats the whole person. She goes deeper; she’ll look at nutrition,

explain causes and how to prevent future problems. I learn an awful lot from her because she has the time. In the

long run, this kind of care makes me mentally and physically more healthy. — DOROTHY ADAMSON, Patient, Murrayville Family Practice

MANAGING CHRONIC DISEASE AND STRENGTHENING PRIMARY CARE

While most family practices

are designed to handle

visits based on immediate

needs, people with chronic

diseases such as heart

disease and diabetes

require longer sessions in

order to look at the many

different health issues.

Fraser Health is exploring

new ways of helping family

medical practices meet the

dual challenges of providing

effective primary care and

managing chronic disease.

continued on page 16

Dorothy Adamson and Anjie Gibson, Nurse Practitioner

13

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PROVIDING HOSPICE PALLIATIVE CARE SUPPORT

For people like Linda Lavell,

who was on her own at

home with her husband

the night that he died,

having access to a Palliative

Response Nurse was helpful

and comforting.

“Lyn was a lifeline for me,”

Lavell explains. “She calmed

me down so I didn’t get

panicky and gave me

medical advice so I could

help my husband be

comfortable. Knowing there

was a person I could talk to

was incredibly valuable.”

continued on page 17

When my husband’s cancer started to advance rapidly, he let me know it was important for him to die at home.

In the middle of the last night, he was in a lot of pain but he couldn’t keep his morphine down. I was scared

and didn’t know what to do. When I called the 24-hour palliative nurse line, I got Lyn. She explained what was

happening and what I could do. Her advice helped me make my husband comfortable, and he died peacefully

about an hour later. — LINDA LAVELL, Chilliwack

Linda Lavell (left) and Lyn Gallie

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Coordinating Fraser Health’s response to a pandemic is the biggest challenge of my career. It’s a huge

responsibility but I’m confi dent we’re one of the best prepared health authorities in the country. We know what

we need to do to care for people properly and it’s all in place – from large scale plans like alternative care sites

to important details such as protocols for dealing with individual patients. If we had to, we could respond

tomorrow. — DAVE BURGESS, Emergency Response Planning Coordinator

PREPARING FOR A PANDEMIC

An infl uenza pandemic, even

a relatively mild one, would

put a severe strain on our

health system. Fraser Health

has been actively preparing

for a pandemic since 2002. It’s

the largest health emergency

management initiative we’ve

ever undertaken.

We are working to address

the three major health care

challenges of a pandemic:

• dramatic increases in health

care demand,

• shortages of health care

staff and physicians

resulting from illness, and

• shortages of supplies

and equipment.

continued on page 18

Dave Burgess (left) and Jon Acorn, Fraser Health’s Manager of Protection and Emergency Management

15

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“People who use crystal meth are scared of it because it has such a hold on them,” Kosty explains. “It’s so destructive and so addictive. It’s like having everything you ever wanted in a room. You don’t want to leave that room.”

In addition to providing a quick high, crystal meth takes away the user’s appetite and gives them lots of energy. It can also cause lasting disfi gurement. When toxins are released into the system, the chemicals are so impure that they can’t be sweated out of the body. Bumps form beneath the skin, causing sores that the user often picks at incessantly. The result is scarring, usually on the face.

Kosty sees crystal meth users as young as 12-years-old. But use of the drug seems to be tapering off as its frightening impact becomes known. “Fortunately the community is becoming more aware of what this type of drug does to you,” says Kosty.

To meet the needs of people with sub-stance abuse problems, our Addictions Services offers programs that range from prevention, day treatment, and outpatient services to withdrawal management and residential treatment programs.

For more information, visit our website at www.fraserhealth.ca/HealthInfo/MentalHealth

Prevention Begins with Awareness

The most effective way to deal with the issue of crystal meth is to create awareness among families, users and communities. Fraser Health has recently acquired two powerful videos aimed at prevention and education.

“Death by Jib” is a documentary on the dangers of crystal meth use produced through a partnership between Peace Arch Community Services’ Addictions Services and Fraser Health. Created with a high- school audience in mind, the video features disturbing and graphic real-life drama of lives affected by crystal meth.

“Cold as Ice” captures the perspectives of numerous professionals, a mother whose daughter used crystal meth and two former users. This was also co-produced with Peace Arch Community Services’ Addictions Services.

For information or to order copies of these drug prevention videos, contact Peace Arch Community Services at 604.538.2522 or [email protected]

Dr. Mitchell Fagan and his partners, Dr. Dan MacIntosh, Dr. Jay Martens and Dr. Karen Mason in the Murrayville Family Practice in Langley signed on in June 2004 as Fraser Health’s fi rst Enhanced Family Practice site. They use a team approach to provide health care, involving physicians, a primary care Registered Nurse, a Nurse Practitioner, a front offi ce staff, a nutritionist and a mental health nurse, as required.

“We do things differently,” explains Fagan. “We provide all of our own care in-house. Patients are free to see the RN or Nurse Practitioner – they don’t necessarily need to see a doctor.”

DEALING WITH MENTAL HEALTHAND ADDICTIONScontinued from page 12

MANAGING CHRONIC DISEASE AND STRENGTHENING PRIMARY CAREcontinued from page 13

16

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This model improves management of chronic disease because the health care team has more time to delve through the complex issues of treating a condition such as diabetes or heart disease. “Most of our time should be spent on chronic illness, because these conditions have the greatest impact on a person’s ability to have a functioning life,” says Fagan. “But there isn’t time in an average visit with the doctor to adequately deal with all these issues.”

“Lack of knowledge about their condi-tion is a major challenge in dealing with patients with chronic diseases,” explains Anjie Gibson, the clinic’s Nurse Practitioner. “I am able to spend more time with patients, with more of a focus on self-management and what can be done to improve overall health.”

Funded by the Primary Care Transition Fund*, the Murrayville Family Practice hired additional health professionals. They also invested in a computerized system for health records. The system, which is now in use in more than 20 family practices across Fraser Health, takes care of scheduling, billing and health records. It also enables the Murrayville Family Practice to plan care such as regular lab work, see trends over time and track how medications interact with disease states. “This is particularly helpful in treating people with chronic diseases,“ says Fagan.

“Having the right system helps us make sure there are no gaps in care and less duplication – it saves time and money,” he explains. “When we can integrate our system with hospital-based electronic health records, we’ll really be able to provide coordinated care and reduce the illness burden of chronic disease.”

For more information on Primary Health Care and our renewal plan, please visit: www.fraserhealth.ca/Initiatives/Primary-HealthCare

* The Primary Health Care Transition Fund is an $800 million Health Canada initiative designed to facilitate long-term change and renewal to primary health care. British Columbia will receive $74 million over four years (2002-2006). Fraser Health’s share is $13.6 million.

See page 19 for a list of Enhanced Family Practices across Fraser Health.

The BC Nurse Line partners with Fraser Health Home Health to provide after-hours services for palliative home care patients. Before this Tommy Douglas Award-win-ning program was introduced in January 2005, only a few communities provided night-time palliative care support. Now, palliative care patients across Fraser Health can reach a Palliative Response Nurse after Home Health and family physicians offi ces are closed.

The patient or family member fi rst calls the BC Nurse Line. If further assistance is required, the BC Nurse Line will phone the on-call Palliative Response Nurse, who will provide advice and contact the family physician or an on-call palliative care physician.

“At times I thought, I can’t do this alone at home. But it’s not scary when you have these resources available for you,” says Lavell. “I’m so glad that we were at home. It was important to my husband.”

continued on page 18

PROVIDING HOSPICE PALLIATIVE CARE SUPPORTcontinued from page 14

17

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Providing a Unique Approach

Fraser Health’s integrated approach is unique in British Columbia. In addition to the after-hours service, Fraser Health offers a range of hospice palliative care services. A consultation team, including a physician, clinical nurse specialist, clinical resource nurse, social worker and volunteer coordinator provides hospice palliative care in hospitals, seven hospices, residential care facilities and homes.

Let’s Talk

One of the challenges of dealing with end of life is the important conversations that often don’t take place.

To promote Advance Care Planning, Fraser Health has introduced “Let’s Talk.” This initiative includes a strong educational component – videos in three languages, educational materials, and presentations to health care providers and community groups.

“Talking now about the type of care you do and do not want can reduce anxiety for your family and friends,” explains Sue Grant, Project Leader for Advance Care Planning.

Find out more at www.fraserhealth.ca/ healthinfo/advancecareplanning

Our efforts to prepare for a pandemic include:

• Pandemic* Infl uenza Preparedness Plan. This technical document is designed for health care workers and emergency planners. It is a “big picture” plan that addresses how we will control the spread of disease and mitigate the effects of a pandemic.

• Community implementation pilot. This project tested our pandemic plan using simulation exercises. This pilot allowed us to further defi ne our plans.

• Pandemic Infl uenza Response and Management Toolkit. Fraser Health has developed practical guidelines for health care management during a pandemic. This Toolkit is designed for our health providers and is available on our website. It provides plans and guidelines to ensure important factors

such as continuity of health services, proper patient care, public health and infection control, ethical decision-making and effective communications are in place.

* A pandemic is a global outbreak of an infectious disease.

Flu Prevention Checklist

You can play an active role in staying healthy and preventing the spread of infl uenza. Follow these simple steps:

• Get an annual fl u shot.• Wash your hands frequently. Twenty

seconds of hand washing with warm water and soap helps remove bacteria and viruses.

• Cover up when you cough or sneeze.• Keep shared surface areas clean.

Source: www.infl uenza.gc.ca

Pandemic Information on the Web

Fraser Health www.fraserhealth.ca under Hot Topics or search Pandemic Plan

BC Ministry of Healthwww.health.gov.bc.ca/pandemic

Government of Canadawww.infl uenza.gc.ca

World Health Organizationwww.who.int/infl uenza

BC HealthFileswww.bchealthguide.org/healthfi les

PREPARING FOR A PANDEMICcontinued from page 15

PROVIDING HOSPICE PALLIATIVE CARE SUPPORTcontinued from page 17

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Murrayville Family Practice 604.533.1140 204 – 22112 52nd Avenue Langley, BC V2Y 2M6

Clearbrook Family Practice Group Inc. 604.852.8030 172 – 2655 Clearbrook Road Abbotsford, BC V2T 2Y6

Langley Primary Health Care Associates 604.530.1040 303 – 22112 52nd Avenue Langley, BC V2Y 2M6

Morgan Creek Family Practice Group 604.542.4805 106 – 15252 32nd Avenue Surrey, BC V3S 0R7

Gateway Health & Wellness Centre 604.855.0677 203 – 2051 McCallum Road Abbotsford, BC V2S 3N5

BCST Group 604.463.3169 206 – 11743 224th StreetMaple Ridge, BC V2X 6A4

White Rock Medical Associates 604.531.5595 101 – 15451 Russell AvenueWhite Rock, BC V4B 2R5

George Street Family Practice 604.536.1686 1 – 1400 George Street White Rock, BC V4B 4A3

Oceanside Family Practice Group 604.535.9482 (Dr. Purkis) 604.531.1451 (Dr. Cheyne) 1560 George StreetWhite Rock, BC V4B 4A5

Fort Family Practice Group 604.888.2433 23148 96th AvenueLangley, BC V1M 1A1

BPS Group (Brookswood)604.530.0819 4041 200B StreetLangley, BC V3A 1P1

Four Oaks Medical Associates 604.534.4214 5500 206th StreetLangley, BC V3A 8R3

Crossroads (Promontory) Family Practice Group 604.858.3725 201 – 45800 Promontory Road Chilliwack, BC V2R 5Z5

Windsor Square Family Doctors 604.531.0888 240 – 1959 152nd Street White Rock, BC V4A 9E3

Aspen Family Practice Group 604.536.5823 101A – 2099 152nd StreetSurrey, BC V4A 4N7

Newcombe House Group 604.792.5966 9146 Mary Street

Chilliwack, BC V2P 4J1

ENHANCED FAMILY PRACTICES ACROSS FRASER HEALTH

Enhanced Family Practices use a team approach to provide health care, involving physicians, a primary care Registered Nurse, a Nurse Practitioner, a front offi ce staff, a nutritionist and a mental health nurse as required. This model improves management of chronic disease because the health care team has more time to delve through the complex issues (see article on page 13).

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Foundations, Auxiliaries, the Service League and their volunteers provide enormous support to their local hospitals within the health authority and are an integral part of the health care system, raising funds to purchase vital medical, diagnostic and surgical equipment. They also support patient programs, employee education and research.

Thanks to the generosity of local residents, businesses, service clubs and private foundations, your health care experience is enhanced. Total contributions from Foundations, Auxiliaries and the Service League to the hospitals in our health authority equalled over $20 million in 2005–06. These, and other volunteers across the continuum of health care, gave thousands of hours of service to our patients, residents and the public.

For more information or to contact your local Foundation, go to www.fraserhealth.ca/foundations, or see below.

Burnaby Hospital Foundation

604.431.2881

Delta Hospital Foundation

604.940.3430

Eagle Ridge Hospital Foundation

604.469.3128

Fraser Valley Health Care Foundation

604.814.5190

Langley Hospital Foundation

604.533.6422

Peace Arch Hospital and Community Health Foundation

604.535.4520

Queen’s Park–Fellburn Care Centres Foundation

604.517.8661

Ridge Meadows Hospital Foundation

604.463.1822

Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation

604.520.4438

Surrey Memorial Hospital Foundation

604.588.3371

Fraser Health Corporate Offi ce300 – 10334 152A StreetSurrey, BC V3R 7P8

Tel 604.587.4600Toll free 1.877.935.5669Fax 604.587.4666

[email protected]

SUPPORTING CARE IN PARTNERSHIP

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