*"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."* -Barack Obama
		Foundation-funded Hirdes' project illuminates home and community care challenges - adds evidence to ALC strategy & boosts understanding of chronic disease management in frail elderly There is a tendency to label an individual as needing to go to a nursing home irrespective of need when they're in the hospital...If we took the approach to exhaust all options for care in the community, we may be able to have these people live independent and happy lives back in the community. (Dr. John Hirdes, Scientific Director of the Homewood Research Institute & Professor at the Department of Health Studies and Gerontology, University of Waterloo. The Change Foundation podcast, January 15, 2009) Who are Ontario's Alternate-Level-of-Care (ALC) patients and what do we need to ensure smoother transitions for patients moving from hospital to home to community care? How do we better support and care for people who are at home managing their own complex chronic diseases like congestive heart failure? These are just some of the systemic, timely and inter-related big picture questions to be pursued in a two-year quality improvement research collaboration between The Change Foundation and Ontario Home Care Research Chair John Hirdes. LEARN MORE
		CPRN & The Change Foundation host roundtable to discuss latest research & distill advice for Ontario policy makers on how to improve integrated care for seniors How can Ontario improve the coordination and continuity of care for seniors, many of whom have chronic conditions, as they move between hospital, primary and community care and interact with an array of health services and providers? Research tells us that certain models of care keep seniors healthier without adding costs. What are those models? What can Ontario learn from other jurisdictions and what does it do well already? These are just some of the big picture questions to be debated during a Feb. 25th roundtable co-hosted by The Change Foundation and Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN). Chaired by Foundation board member and respected health consultant Neil Stuart, the roundtable brings together some of the best, most forward-looking minds on geriatric health policy from across the country with a special focus on initiatives in British Columbia and Quebec. The diverse gathering will draw senior policy decision-makers in Ontario, drawn from the Cabinet and Premier's Office, health sector associations, LHINs, CCACs and provincial ministries across Canada. LEARN MORE
		Community Engagement & The LHINs: Truth & Consequences The Change Foundation to host symposium/workshop in partnership with LHINs Community engagement (CE) is not just a legislated requirement for Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs) and health service providers, it is also an important lever to transform health care in communities across Ontario. And yet, research - and every-day experience - reveals that engaging the right people with a clear purpose and to an effective end can be as challenging as it is essential. That's why The Change Foundation is partnering with the LHINs to host an interactive, invitational symposium and workshop, Community Engagement & The LHINs: Truth & Consequences, on March 11^th in Toronto. Targeted to LHIN CEOs, Board Chairs, senior LHIN staff/CE Leads, the program will feature experts in CE research and practice such as Julia Abelson of McMaster University and Peter MacLeod from Mass LBP, as well as a panel of LHIN CEOs Gwen DuBois-Wing and Paul Huras. The symposium/workshop is designed to elicit strategic discussion about how to maximize the opportunity to engage the public in a way that enhances planning, services and health and to learn from LHIN CE experiences to date. It is being offered at an opportune time as the LHINs plan how to engage their publics in the development of Integrated Health Service Plans for 2010-2013. LEARN MORE
		The Change Foundation releases its 2007/08 Annual Report, On Track 2007/2008 was a critical set-up year for The Change Foundation as we put our thinking to good use -- with good input, good will, and good wishes from Ontario's health-care community. We carved out research agendas to support health integration and quality improvement in home and community care, then got to work, attaching projects and people and products to them. We've made a solid start of many of those efforts, and we encourage you to find out more by scanning our annual report. It takes time and talent to deliver quality and excellence, but we think we're On Track to do just that. See where we've been, and read where we are headed. ON Track Report
		CHQI: update CHQI at The Change Foundation sponsors Ontario LHIN-learning at IHI's Triple Aim Conference Earlier this month, CHQI at The Change Foundation provided support to two representatives from each of Ontario's 14 LHINs to attend the Institute for Health Care Improvement's (IHI) Triple Aim conference in Arizona. CHQI's Paula Blackstein-Hirsch and the Foundation's Cathy Fooks also travelled with the 31 representatives including LHIN CEOs, Senior Directors and consultants to learn about a framework for improving quality at a LHIN level. The two-day seminar offered LHIN leaders an opportunity to learn from experts about the Triple Aim goals of improving population health, enhancing the patient experience, and reducing costs. IHI is an independent not-for-profit organization helping to lead the improvement of health care worldwide. "We were keen to introduce Ontario LHIN leaders to the Triple Aim paradigm as this initiative is ideally suited to their mandate to improve population health and integration," says Blackstien-Hirsch. CHQI and The Change Foundation are planning a follow-up workshop for the LHINs this spring to explore how best to integrate this quality improvement learning into future planning and implementation. LEARN MORE
		Acrostic challenge: More cranium crunches with our latest acrostic puzzle Our bodies may be more sedentary in winter, but our brains don't have to be. Continue to exercise your cranium by taking our February acrostic challenge. Once completed, the puzzle reveals a quote connected to our research collaboration with Dr. John Hirdes of the University of Waterloo and Homewood Research Institute on better understanding ALC patients and chronic disease management for seniors with Congestive Heart Failure.Hear his podcast here. To get started, download the acrostic software and fill out the puzzle. (See completed sample from last time here) The first person to send in completed puzzle will receive a $40 Chapters gift certificate. Contact Anila Sunnak, asunnak@changefoundation.com Look for the completed February crossword on our website on Monday March 9.