FEATURE REPORT: CARDIOVASCULAR TECHNOLOGY — SEE PAGE 18
VOL. 23, NO. 8
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018
INSIDE: INFECTION CONTROL PAGE 12 Testing Alexa for homecare Clinicians are experimenting with Echo devices and the Alexa service to make living at home easier for seniors. The system enables seniors, including those with dementia, to ask questions and perform tasks. Page 4
PHOTO: COURTESY OF THE UHN PETER MUNK CARDIAC CENTRE
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CANADA’S MAGAZINE FOR MANAGERS AND USERS OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS IN HEALTHCARE
MVS helps DI departments GE Healthcare maintains the DI equipment produced not only by itself, but by many other vendors. It means that diagnostic imaging departments only have to make a single call to solve problems. Page 6
Lifeline for opioid addicts A made-in-Canada app is providing an electronic tether that connects those addicted to opioids and other drugs to doctors and therapists. Available in Canada and the U.S., it can predict dangerous behaviour. Page 10
Advancing the art of aneurysm repair Dr. Thomas Lindsay, a vascular surgeon at the University Health Network’s Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, demonstrates how a long graft can be inserted into the aorta of a patient, with branches for the kidneys. The innovative, team-based procedure is performed using minimally invasive methods, all through a small incision rather than open surgery. It reduces trauma to the patient and speeds up recovery times. STORY ON PAGE 20.
MedChart enables easier retrieval of health records BY D AV E W E B B
N
EWMARKET, ONT. – Southlake Re-
gional Health Centre has partnered with Toronto-based startup MedChart Inc. to allow patients and authorized third parties to easily request and quickly obtain medical records online, day or night. Southlake – a 426-bed hospital and cancer-care centre located north of Toronto – was the first hospital to join the MedChart network, in a pilot project funded partly by the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario). MedChart began working with Southlake on the pilot in November 2016, and went live in May 2017. Records retrieval is a time-consuming and
ultimately expensive process for patients, says Rob Bull, Vice President of Finance, Technology and Innovation at Southlake. Previously, requests needed to be made in person during business hours, 8 am to 4 pm, Monday to Fri-
Turnaround time for the delivery of patient records has been reduced dramatically. day. This required special trips to the hospital, with time off work and parking fees. “That can be quite an inconvenience and amounts to an extra cost for the patient,” Bull says. For third parties, such as personal injury law firms or insurance companies, gathering
records can be even more time-consuming. Those requests are typically made by mail. A health information official might have to make phone calls for clarification, requiring more mailed documentation and extra fees. “There’s a lot of mailing back and forth,” says Bull. In any case, the average request for patient records used to take 16-21 days to complete on average. However, the pilot at Southlake has reduced the turnaround time to less than two days. And it’s done online, so the patient – or his or her advocate – doesn’t have to travel anywhere or use mail or fax. In the case of Southlake, the MedChart system has been connected to the hospital’s C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 2