ESCN Podcast: Improving Acute Care for Long-term Care Residents

This episode of the ESCN podcast features an insightful conversation with senior healthcare leaders to discuss an initiative aimed to optimizing transfers from Long-term Care Facilities to an Emergency Department. The ESCN is partnering with Seniors Health, RAAPID, Community Paramedicine, and Long-term Care (LTC) Facilities. The solution is a centralized and standardized LTC-ED care and referral pathway for LTC facilities considering transfer to ED. In conjunction with the implementation of this new pathway, targeted INTERACT® (Interventions to Reduce Acute Care Transfers) tools will be implemented within LTC. This new standardized LTC-ED care and referral pathway will help to better optimize use of both the emergency department and the community paramedicine program, in a way that is patient-centered. Studies have shown that the provision of community paramedicine within LTC can significantly reduce transfers to emergency. This initiative will be implemented within 36 LTC facilities in the Calgary Zone between August 2019 and March 2022. If the evaluation of this change demonstrates improvements to both LTC residents and the health care system outcomes, it will be spread to other zones within the province, starting with the Central zone. Participants Host: Andrea Golding, Senior Project Manager, AHS Emergency Strategic Clinical Network Guests: • Dr. Jayna Holroyd-Leduc, U of Calgary Geriatric Medicine Division Head within the Department of Medicine, and Medical Director of Specialized Geriatric Services in AHS Calgary zone • Dr. Eddy Lang, Scientific Director of the AHS Emergency Strategic Clinical Network and U of Calgary Head of the Department of Emergency Medicine • Dr. Vivian Ewa, U of Calgary Section Chief of Seniors Care within the Department of Family Medicine, and Medical Director of Integrated Seniors and Facility Living in AHS Calgary zone