The provincial government is providing $4,688,980 in funding to support alternative levels of care and patient flow initiatives at the St. Joseph’s Care Group, roughly doubling the funding the group had received last year.
This comes as part of a $131 million one-time provincial investment targeted at reducing alternative levels of care cases and supporting patient flow from hospitals.
“The investment of $4.7 million now that is earmarked here for Saint Joseph’s Care Group, is going to go towards, that transitioning patients back into the community and to reduce admissions to hospital,” explained Thunder Bay – Atikokan MPP Kevin Holland. ” This is as a result of ongoing consultation and discussions with the caregivers in our community as to, what is best needed or what is most needed to ensure that we’re realizing the ultimate care for the residents of Thunder Bay – Atikokan.”
The Willow Place Community Transitional Care Unit is receiving almost half of the funding or $2,264,900. The unit is a 32-bed community-based transitional care unit for people who no longer require specialized care in the hospital and are waiting for supportive housing, long-term care, Indigenous housing, a return to home with modifications/renovations, or a return to their home community.
Willow Place has admitted 112 clients with 79 people successfully returning home, since its opening in October 2022 through December 2023.
Seniors Supportive Housing is receiving $917, 080 of the funding which is an increase from funding previously released. It means that seniors whose needs have changed will receive more services to continue to live as independently as possible in the community, delaying potential admission to long-term care. Examples of services include homemaking, personal support, security checks and care coordination services.
St. Joseph’s Care Group operates two seniors’ supportive housing apartment buildings, with 132 units at Sister Leila Greco Apartments, and 181 units at PR Cook Apartments.
The North West Regional Rehabilitative Care Program provides capacity-building, best-practice education, and care management support, and it is set to receive $190,000 of the funding. Coupled with outreach services to bridge physiotherapy and occupational therapy vacancies in the region, these strategies enable and elevate the standard level of care across northwestern Ontario
According to the St. Joseph’s Care Group between April and December of 2023, the RRCP conducted 1,200 outreach service visits to more than 390 clients at 10 different sites. For people living in the region, it has saved 636,000km of travelling to receive care while reducing the wait time for post-surgical outpatient physiotherapy by 122 days.
A partnership between the St. Joseph’s Care Group and the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre is receiving $647,000.
The partnership focuses on early identification, screening and assessment of older adults at risk of frailty and is conducted by a St. Joseph’s Care Group geriatric-trained occupational therapist and physiotherapist in the emergency department, allowing for timely referrals or transitions to other care settings.
For older adults, it means accessing the right care as soon as possible whether that is at home with support, a referral to Seniors’ Outpatient Services, or admission to St. Joseph’s Hospital’s Geriatric Assessment & Rehabilitative Care unit. This funding also supports clients returning home once they have completed their Geriatric Assessment & Rehabilitative Care through post-discharge services and therapeutic recreation.
Behavioural Supports Ontario received the last major portion of the funding or $630,000. This funding is primarily being used to expand the reach of St. Joseph’s Care Group’s Psychogeriatric Resources Consultant to grow capacity to provide safe, appropriate care for older adults who have or are at risk of responsive behaviours among hospitals and long-term care homes across Northwestern Ontario, including at Nipigon District Memorial Hospital and Geraldton District Hospital.
The last group receiving funding is the Bedsitter Program at PR Cook Apartments receiving a total of $40,000 from the province.
Following inpatient rehabilitative care at St. Joseph’s Hospital, many people require outpatient rehabilitation after returning home to complete their recovery.
For people who live in the region, outpatient rehabilitation may not be available in their home community. The Bedsitter Program at PR Cook Apartments provides temporary accommodation and related expenses in an accessible environment with transitional services while they complete outpatient rehabilitation at St. Joseph’s Hospital. Unlike a hospital stay, the Bedsitter Program provides a homelike environment with rehabilitation opportunities, building confidence before returning home to the region. For the healthcare system, it means more inpatient beds are available for those in need, is more cost-effective than a hospital stay, and leads to more successful transitions back home.
“When it comes to the healthcare needs of our region, funding that allows for innovations and local solutions is crucial,” said the President and CEO of the St. Joseph’s Care Group Janine Black. “The $4.6 million investment has increased capacity for care closer to home across northwestern Ontario.”
These initiatives were first launched in 2022-23 and according to the provincial government projections show a reduction of approximately 2200 alternative levels of care cases by the end of this fiscal year. With the enhancement of funding the benefit to the health care system should increase moving forward as well.
