NYGH takes lead to improve patient safety across Canada
North York General Hospital is providing a valuable resource, absolutely free, to all Canadian hospitals interested in developing electronic systems to improve their quality and safety of care.
"A lot of hard work from every area in our hospital went into developing and launching an advanced electronic medical record system. Electronic alerts prevent medication errors and the system provides physicians with the latest medical evidence to ensure patient treatments are the best standard of care. We want to share our lessons learned so other Canadian hospitals can benefit," says Dr. Jeremy Theal, Chief Medical Information Officer. "Essentially, the Canadian CPOE(computerized provider order entry) Toolkit and Implementation Guide saves other hospitals from reinventing the wheel."
Tucked behind North York General Hospital's Seniors' Health Centre, lies a vacant 1940s estate surrounded by beautiful, lush landscape. The property's potential has never been in question; the challenge has been to identify its best use.
Thanks to a partnership between the hospital and the North York General Foundation, the once dormant Phillips House will now be transformed into a one-of-a-kind setting for ambulatory and transitional mental health services for children, adolescents, women and their families.
Innovative approach to learning puts patients first
This fall, Kate Stead became one of four medical students at North York General Hospital participating in the University of Toronto's pilot Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (LInC) program.
Until now, the hospital had only offered the traditional block of clerkships where medical students practised one discipline at a time. LInC allows medical students to study multiple disciplines simultaneously, gathering many different perspectives on a patient's health care journey. This benefits both the student and patient says Dr. Clare Hutchinson, lead administrator of our LInC program.
To ensure our staff and physicians are prepared for complex births, North York General Hospital's simulation lab provides hands-on training, education and certification in a safe teaching environment.
We are using high-tech tools to mirror real labour and delivery situations.
Under the leadership of Dr. Phillip Shin, Chief of Medicine and Medical Director of Critical Care, North York General Hospital has made incredible strides in developing a mobilization program within the Critical Care Unit.
Nine-year-old Krystal (Ore) Otaraki isn't a young pop star but a participant in an innovative study that investigates music's impact on children about to have surgery.
"We know music can have a calming effect in stressful situations and surgery can cause anxiety," says Dr. Sharifa Himidan, North York General Hospital Paediatric Surgeon and principal investigator. "I wondered if personalized music - music actually created by the children - could help them cope as they waited for their operation."
