London Middlesex Primary Care and COVID-19 Update

London Middlesex Primary Care Update

August 21, 2020

New/Updated Provincial Guidelines for COVID-19

COVID Alert App! Download it here.
Updated case definition - now includes cases confirmed through serology testing.
Reference document for symptoms - now includes updated descriptions of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in children (MIS-C)
COVID-19 Provincial Testing Guidance - now includes serological testing and further direction for testing asymptomatic individuals.
CMPA guidance: what to do if a patient refuses to wear a mask
OMA updated Primary Care Guidance Summary for COVID 19
COVID-19 Evidence Weekly Update - from MOH's Research, Analysis and Evaluation Branch (RAEB). Provides up-to-date, curated evidence about COVID-19 and the response to the pandemic.
Guidance for immuno-compromised students when returning to school
Updated FAQ on face coverings in public - From Southwestern Public Health

Policy change: requesting PPE from ON pandemic stockpile

(Note that this policy is temporary, subject to change in the future.)

Ontario Health West is now able to supply primary care with PPE at no cost directly from the ON pandemic stockpile at the point of access (same conditions for PPE allocated from the provincial supply to date).

To request a transitional supply of PPE:

Complete this form. The West Region’s supply chain lead, Healthcare Materials Management Services (HMMS) will process requests and deliver them over the next week.

Conservation and appropriate use:

Providers receiving PPE from the ON pandemic supply must ensure their practices are in line with the PPE guidance available on conservation and appropriate use, as developed by the Chief Medical Officer of Health.

Reporting into virtual inventory required:

If you receive this PPE, you are expected to report into the critical supplies and equipment (CSE) virtual inventory, as directed by Minister’s Order for the health sector.
Information to submit: inventory levels and consumption forecasts to inform what organizations will use.
Why report? Accurate and timely reporting into the virtual inventory provides the province with the information it needs to support its pandemic response.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please email HMMSCOVID19@hmms.on.ca

PPE education

These PPE educational documents were carefully curated from reputable government agencies and have been provided with all PPE orders delivered to primary care.

Ontario Health Digital Health Supports Survey

You are invited to inform the delivery of digital health supports to meet your needs, during COVID-19 and beyond! Please complete a brief survey that should take about 10 minutes.

The survey seeks to gather information on how you are currently using virtual visits and digital health tools, barriers you’re experiencing, and how you plan to use virtual care beyond the pandemic. Through the survey, you’ll have the opportunity to provide input on the type of support that would be most helpful to you for integrating virtual care and various digital health tools in your practice.

The survey will remain active until September 4^th , 2020 and can be completed at the following link:https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/OHWRDIGITALTOOLS

Participation in this survey is voluntary, and you may choose to decline to answer any questions or exit the survey at any time. Please be advised that submitting your answers will be considered as your consent to participate in this study. More information is available and can be accessed here.

If have any questions, or concerns, please contact the Project Lead, either by email at Lirije.Hyseni@ehealthce.ca or via phone at 519-722-3411. This study has been reviewed by the Hamilton Integrated Research Ethics Board (HIREB), Project 11389.

Your input through this survey is greatly appreciated and will inform the delivery of support to better meet your needs.

Re-opening your offices

Updated: August 14, 2020

Guide for re-opening primary care and community specialist offices - SW Non-Hospital Pandemic Planning Table (see www.swcovidtools.ca).

Updates include:

Re-introducing Deferred Primary Care Services FAQ - OMA, SGFP, AFHTO, OCFP
OMA primary care guidance summary
All the COVID and PPE resources listed above

Clinical Information and Tools

E-Consult now available for LTC providers and COVID advice

E-Consult has added resources for long-term care providers to their website. Find answers to frequently asked questions, sample cases, research evidence, a cost savings and usage estimator tool, and more. Help your patients benefit from timely access to specialty advice, while avoiding difficult travel for specialist visits.
COVID-19 BASE™ Managed Specialty Group now available province wide: physicians and nurse practitioners can ask clinical questions to an Infectious Disease specialist electronically and receive a response within days. This is the only group that allows for population-based, non-patient specific clinical questions. Find out how to receive COVID-19 advice through eConsult.

Advance Care Planning during COVID

Advance Care Planning, Goals of Care and health care decision making conversations are becoming more prevalent and more important than ever, with aging population and COVID-19. Find everything you, your patients and families need at SpeakUpOntario.ca

For providers & public: primary care patient/client virtual care experience survey

The rapid adoption of virtual care during COVID addresses current needs but will most likely shape the future of primary care delivery after COVID. The Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario (AFHTO) and patients, primary care, health system and health research organizations formed a working group to create the Primary Care Patient/Client Virtual Care Experience Survey.
This will help fill informational gaps to inform future planning and further support the implementation of virtual care in primary care. Different tools, guides and templates are available to help. Feel free to share this public survey with your peers. Visit the AFHTO site to find out more.

Save the dates - ENT Refresher Webinar Series!

The Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Western is offering a 5 Part ENT Refresher Webinar Series every Wednesday starting at 12:15 pm, from September 16 to October 14.
Each webinar will be 45 mins in duration, followed by a 25 min Q/A period. Webinars will be held via Zoom, and space is limited. Registration priority will be given to family physicians practicing in Ontario.
Read more and register here.

ECHO Ontario Mental Health - Fall Programs

Join Project ECHO for any of the 6 mental health programs being offered starting September 2020. Topics include addictions, DBT, Trans healthcare, OCD and IDD. View the offerings here.

If there are non-hospital COVID-19 related issues/solutions in your region, please escalate them to your

Regional Pandemic Clinical Lead

(tasked by Ontario Health West to facilitate, coordinate, and engage with stakeholders for the pandemic response within the SW LHIN area RE: primary care/vulnerable populations)...structure HERE.

Dr. Gordon Schacter

London-Middlesex

gschacter@me.com

Co-Chair, SW Prim Care/Vulnerable Pop'n Response