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New Ontario plan gives patients bigger say in their health care

Ontario has launched a plan that will give patients and their caregivers greater flexibility in choosing a provider, and how and when that provider delivers services.

May 14, 2015  By Massage Therapy Canada staff


This new provision is part of the provincial government’s program
Patients First: A Roadmap to Strengthen Home and Community Care. This
initiative aims to improve and expand home and community care for
Ontarians over the next three years.

“Our new plan puts patients
and their caregivers first by improving access and expanding services,”
said Minister of Health and Long-Term Care Dr. Eric Hoskins.

“We
know that people who receive care in their homes – where they want to
be – tend to heal faster because they are happier and more comfortable
in a familiar setting. Our new plan outlines the path we will follow
together with patients, caregivers and providers to improve the care
people receive no matter where they live across the province.”

Ontario’s
new plan for home and community care also includes an increase to home
care nursing service hours to meet the needs of patients with complex
care needs.

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Funding for an additional 80,000 hours of nursing
care is part of the 2015 Budget commitment to increase investment in
home and community care by more than $750 million over the next three
years. These extra hours of care will make it possible for individuals
with complex conditions to receive care where they want to be – in their
home and community, instead of in a hospital or in long-term care.

The
new plan outlines how the government will transform delivery of care at
home and in the community. Key initiatives will include:

•    Expanding supports for family caregivers
•    Giving clients and caregivers greater say in choosing a provider, and how and when that provider delivers services
•    Clear and consistent levels of home and community care services no matter where in the province a patient lives
•    Enhancing support for personal support workers
•    Providing greater choice for palliative and end-of-life care

Helping
more people access better health care faster and closer to home is part
of the government’s plan to build a better Ontario through its Patients
First: Action Plan for Health Care, which is providing patients with
faster access to the right care, better home and community care, the
information they need to stay healthy and a health care system that’s
sustainable for generations to come, according to the health ministry.

Home care is provided to more than 600,000 people per year – 60 per cent of whom are seniors.

“As
Ontario’s population ages, the need for senior-focused health-care
services grows ever more important. Our government’s commitment is to
help seniors age with dignity and to achieve this we are continuing to
invest in services that will help more seniors get the right care so
they can age in the place they most want to be, in their homes,” said
Mario Sergio, Minister Responsible for Seniors Affairs.


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