Program overview :
Promising Practices for Partnering on Appropriate Virtual Care
Virtual care is growing rapidly across the country, as more primary care providers use technology to deliver healthcare. Healthcare Excellence Canada (HEC) launched an initiative to help care providers and patients work together to ensure virtual care is provided in an appropriate, safe and equitable way. Through a 12-month collaborative program HEC supported 39 teams across Canada to develop a functional framework for determining when and how virtual care could be used appropriately, safely and equitably in their unique care settings, fostering partnerships with patients, families and communities for effective healthcare delivery.
This summary profiles promising practices developed by nine participating teams that aim to improve healthcare access and outcomes, reduce avoidable emergency department (ED) visits, foster patient-provider partnerships and ensure virtual care access for diverse populations. These innovative frameworks highlight:
- equity and inclusive access
- safety in virtual care
- integrated people centered care.
See Promising Practices
Optimizing Workflows to Deliver Standardized and Appropriate Virtual Care
The primary goal of this initiative was to address inconsistent communication and triaging between patients and medical office assistants, which led to varied patient experiences and an unstandardized approach to meeting patient and provider needs.
Supporting Rural and Remote Communities with Virtual Rehabilitation Services
This initiative’s goal was to utilize virtual technology to triage, assess and treat eligible patients and leverage therapy assistant in-person support within the patient’s home community, thereby reducing waitlists and improving health outcomes.
Leveraging Virtual Care to Support Francophone Patients and Caregivers at Home
This project aimed to optimize the bilingual care coordinator’s time and to develop resources to promote the appropriate use of virtual care in interactions with linguistically diverse communities.
Zoom for Healthcare (Z4HC) delivered via Single App iPads
The primary goal of this initiative is to improve therapeutic connections, visual assessments and discharge planning for patients.
Integrated Virtual Care Framework for Primary Care
This initiative aims to improve access to primary care and patient experience using virtual care in the Western Zone.
North York Family Health Team Virtual Care Framework
The primary goal was to better meet patient needs and provide safe and effective care by increasing the percentage of interprofessional healthcare provider (IHP) visits that met patient preferences by 10 percent.
Appropriate Virtual Care for Linguistically Diverse Communities
The primary goal of this promising practice was to create resources that promote the appropriate use of virtual care in healthcare interactions involving linguistically diverse communities.
Enabling Chronic Disease Management Services in the Lil’wat Nation Through Virtual Health
The primary objective of this promising practice was to improve access to culturally safe chronic disease management and care in communities like Lil’wat Nation.
Self-management of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
This project helps users and caregivers better monitor illness by providing them with support and education.
