AFTER-HOURS CALL GROUP LEARNING MODULE

The LTCI team has been working hard to improve accessibility of information on our website by developing a multimedia informational module covering the basics of using the After-Hours Call Group. The module is made up of a series of short educational videos, complementary webpages, a list of resources, and a brief quiz designed to help you navigate the after-hours call group successfully. Our hope is that by making this information easily accessible to all that use the after-hours call group, that we will encourage clear, concise communication between care home staff and physicians, preemptively address issues before they arise, and help to streamline the training of new staff. Stay tuned for the official release in the coming months.

PHYSICIAN WORKFORCE PRACTICE PLANNING COMMITTEE (PWPPC)

Some members of the LTCI recently formed the Victoria Physician Workforce and Practice Planning Committee. They are a group of family physicians, funded by the LTCI, that have formed to support long-term care physician recruitment, retention, and retirement. If you are planning any changes to your practice, please connect with this group so they can help! They hope to create supports for panel transfers during retirement by aiding in finding coverage and by funding remunerated shadowing sessions, among other transition supports. They also aim to develop a robust recruitment plan to ensure a sustainable long-term care physician workforce, ensuring representation from a variety of practice styles. Finally, they seek to engage with existing long-term care physicians to reduce barriers to practice and to refine incentives and supports.

Would you like to increase or reduce your LTC practice? Could you use some LTC practice support? Do you have something to add to the conversation? Please reach out to us!

FRIENDLY REMINDER: USE OF THE AFTER-HOURS CALL GROUP FROM THE LTCI CO-CHAIRS

The LTCI After-Hours Call Groups have now been in place across Victoria, Sooke, and the Saanich Peninsula for several years. One of the biggest successes of the call group(s) has been having one number for care home staff to call to reliably reach a physician after-hours for urgent issues. Having one number to reach the physician on call simplifies the process for care home staff and minimizes after-hours coverage requirements for physicians. That said, we have heard that care home staff occasionally call the MRP instead of the call group, and we have also been receiving reports of MRPs asking care homes to call them after-hours instead of using the LTCI after-hours call group(s). We understand that physicians asking to be called after-hours are doing so out of a genuine care for the resident and family, however this bypassing has the unintended impact of jeopardizing the stability of after-hours coverage and can be confusing/time consuming for care home staff. Having different policies and procedures for different physicians, even if well intended, makes the process for reaching a physician after-hours unnecessarily complicated for care home staff in a time of urgency. As always, as MRP, you may wish to provide coverage after-hours in exceptional circumstances, such as an end-of-life situation. If that is the case, please notify care home staff and leave a note in the resident chart.

**In the case that, as MRP, you get a call from a care home after-hours, please redirect the caller back to the call group in your area. **

CONGRATULATIONS!

LTCI physician, Dr. Matthew Vaughan, was recently married. Congratulations Matt and Mitiya from all of us at the LTCI!

DR. TOM BAILEY MEMORIAL CELEBRATION 

Please join us for this special celebration remembering Dr. Tom Bailey and his contributions to the Eldercare Foundation and the community at large. To honour Dr. Bailey’s legacy of caring for older adults, the Eldercare Foundation worked with his family to create two memorials: A Memorial Garden and Sculpture at the Summit at Quadra Village and the Tom Bailey Memorial Bursary held by the Eldercare Foundation and awarded by Camosun College annually. This event is being held at The Summit at Quadra Village on Wednesday, July 20^th, 2022 from 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM PDT. Please register here before July 14, 2022 to attend.

MISSED IT?

Have you missed any of our virtual learning series events? Most are recorded and posted on our website along with their accompanying slides here.

RESOURCES

Island Health has released a new scabies protocol. You can find a copy of it on our website.

The Island Health Medical Staff Bulletin from May 25, 2022 can be found here.

The BCCDC releases a weekly Long-Term Care, Assisted Living & Independent Living Report outlining current cases of Covid-19 in care homes. The most recent report can be found linked here.

The Conversation Project, a public engagement initiative of IHI, provides a guide to supporting others through a difficult diagnosis. More information can be found here.

Find information about the BC Centre for Palliative Care, and the supports and resources they provide, here.

The Pain Foundations for Primary Care Providers Course is a free, online, and self-paced (12-15 hrs) pain science and chronic pain management course for doctors and other health professionals offered by Pain BC. Find more details and course registration info here.

A 2 hour, three-module, eLearning course on Culturally Safe Advance Care Planning is available here.

Find the link for each region’s After-Hours Call Group poster and the most recent after-hours SBAR on our website here.

The team at I-CAARE has been developing culturally safe practice tools in partnership with Northeast Behavioural Supports Ontario. Find them here.

Dr. Nicola Macpherson’s Little Black eBook of Palliative Pearls July 2022 version is available. Please email her directly to ensure you recieve the most recent copy.  

EVENTS

July 12, 2022: 08:00-09:00 PST 'Coffee Talks with the Board' hosted by Dr. Melissa Duff and Dr. Anna Mason of the VDFP. Chat, bring your concerns and connect with colleagues! RSVP here. 

July 12, 2022: 12:00-13:00 PST BC ECHO for Post-COVID-19 Recovery – A Respirology Perspective. This is the final installment in the series and will focus on the long-term respiratory complications of COVID-19, rehabilitation strategies, and will provide tools and resources for including these in your every day practice. For more information and to register, visit their website.

Aug 16-19, 2022: Towards Unity for Health Conference hosted by the BC Patient Quality and Safety Council and held at AMS Nest at UBC 6133 University Blvd in Vancouver. This year's theme is "Moving Forward Together: Unity for Health for All." Cost is $25. For more information, visit their site here.

3 Sessions Remain: Physician Psychological Safety 2022 Webinar Series

• September 27 @ 17:30-18:30 PST Reaching out to Colleagues in Distress
• October 25 @ 17:30-18:30 PST Giving and Receiving Effective Feedback
• November 22 @ 17:30-18:30 PST Achieving Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Register through the email listed here. To view recordings of previous sessions, visit the Island Health page.

Oct 28, 2022: 08:15-15:35 PST-UBC Division of Palliative Care CME Day 2022. For more details and to register, see their webpage.

SUMMER SOCIAL EVENTS

Aug 12-14, 2022: The Victoria Dragon Boat Festival is in its 27^th year. View more information or register a team here.

May 17-Nov 5, 2022: 'Queer at Sea: Tales from the 2SLGBTQ+ Community' is an exhibit being put on by the Maritime Museum of BC and highlights the contributions and impact of the queer and trans community on BC's maritime history. For more information, see their website here.

Ongoing Markets: 

The Moss Street Market on Saturdays and the Sindey Night Market on Thursday evenings are just two examples of the vibrant and bustling markets available around Greater Victoria in the summer months. For a full list and more details, visit this website here.

Ongoing Events:

Running Monday to Saturday all summer long, with 11am and 2pm slots available, the ‘A Taste of Victoria’ Food Tour is a great way to get to know some of the local food gems if you’re new to town, or to be a tourist in your own town and support local businesses. See more information and book tours here.

The Victoria Harbour Ferries (otherwise known as the ‘Pickle Boats’) perform a Water Ballet in the inner harbour most weekends through the spring and summer months. For the best view, head to the Steamship terminal. For more information and scheduling, go to their website here.