Access

icon of a door opening, representing access Access is not just about decreasing wait times, it is about having the right intervention for the right client at the right time and place. Eastern Health aims to ensure that clients are getting the care they require by improving access to primary health care, mental health and addictions services, seniors’ care and specialty services in acute care and tertiary care.

The organization is exploring innovative, alternative methods of delivering care that can help to overcome access barriers posed by COVID-19, as well as traditional barriers faced in the region such as geographic dispersion and an increasing demand for services. By focusing on the objectives below, Eastern Health aims to address client issues and concerns in a timely manner, thereby improving patient outcomes and reducing the need for more complex interventions.

Eastern Health’s access priority aligns with two of the Provincial Government’s Strategic Directions: Healthier People and Better Living.

GOAL:

By March 31, 2023 Eastern Health will have improved access to services in identified program areas.

Objectives

Key Performance Indicators

Improved access to primary health care
  • Increased attachment to a primary health-care provider
  • Better management of chronic disease with a focus on COPD
  • Increased utilization of virtual care
  • Increased patient and provider satisfaction with alternative methods of delivering primary health care
Improved access to mental health and addictions services
  • Decreased wait times for outpatient child psychiatry
  • Decreased wait times for outpatient adult psychiatry
  • Decreased wait times for child and adolescent counselling services
Helped seniors stay healthy and independent at home for as long as possible
  • Increased number of seniors with an annual assessment completed
  • Increased number of seniors with a support plan completed
Delivered acute care and tertiary-level services efficiently
  • Decreased Alternate Level of Care (ALC) days in acute care
  • Decreased length of stay for typical acute care inpatients
  • Resumption of services to volumes appropriate for the current COVID-19 Alert Level with established backlog plan

Eastern Health will work to achieve each Access objective over all three fiscal years from 2020-2023. An Eastern Health Operational Plan (EHOP) will outline yearly action plans, from 2020-2023, that aim to make progress on each indicator.

The key performance indicators will be monitored across all three years to track progress on the goal and corresponding objectives.

Report on Progress

Report on progress 2021-2022: Strategic priorities (PDF)

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Last updated: 2022-09-29