Waddington Mount
Community Update - Issue #5
www.viha.ca/about_viha/community/mt_waddington.htm February 2015
More than 75 people – including First Nations representatives,
local government officials, Island Health partners and staff,
members of the Mount Waddington Collaborative Working
Group and area residents – braved a wintry wind on January 22
to celebrate the completion of the new Port Hardy Primary
Health Care Centre.
The crowd warmed up by joining the dancers in the First Nations
blessing and ribbon-cutting ceremony before touring the
beautifully designed, modern and well-equipped building.
Accessible primary health care and wellness for Mount Waddington
residents was the theme of the celebration and the collaborative
efforts of this community-led project were acknowledged by
speakers and guests, as was the instrumental role played by
former mayor Bev Parnham.
The health care centre, located at the north end of the Port Hardy
Hospital property, will be fully operational by spring 2015.
Primary health and some community care services will be joined
in one convenient location.
The cost of the project is $2.6 million, with Island Health
through the Province providing $1.84 million and the Mount
Waddington Regional Hospital District contributing $760,000.
The centre will house an integrated primary health care team
including physicians, nurse practitioners and staff providing
overall care coordination for clients. There is also space for
visiting medical specialists and visiting community practitioners.
For more, please visit: http://www.viha.ca/about_viha/news/
news_releases/ and https://www.flickr.com/photos/islandhealth
Celebrating Port Hardy’s new primary health care centre
Chief Calvin Hunt, Kwakiutl First Nation, prepares guest dancers with eagle down to join a First Nations blessing at the new Port Hardy
Primary Health Care Centre. With Chief Hunt, left to right: Jean Wheeler, Island Health Board member, Dr. Jeff Beselt, Executive
Medical Director, Geography 1 and Alison Mitchell, Director of Health Services, Mount Waddington/Strathcona.
Port McNeill Collaborative Clinic’s team approach
www.viha.ca/about_viha/community/mt_waddington.htm Page 2
Residents of Port McNeill have improved access to integrated health
services thanks to a new collaborative focus by health care providers
in the region.
The medical clinic in Port McNeill has added “collaborative” to
its name to reflect an inclusive, team-based approach of providing
health care that benefits both patients and health care providers.
After a recent renovation by the clinic owners that increased the
number of exam rooms and a leasing arrangement with Island
Health, community-based Mental Health and Substance Use staff
and a social worker are rotating through the clinic. They work
alongside the clinic’s physicians, nurse, staff and Island Health’s
nurse practitioner to offer enhanced access to health care and an
expanded, broader range of services in one location.
“The future of health care, especially rural health, is collaboration.
Here at the Port McNeill Collaborative Clinic we are looking at ways
of doing this effectively,” said Dr. Dave Whittaker, a
physician-owner. “We know that it is more than just working in the
same building but we are hoping that over time our patients will
start seeing the benefits.”
Just as before, residents can call the clinic at 250-956-3377 to make
medical appointments. Additional Island Health services are
expected to be relocated to the Port McNeill Medical Collaborative
in the coming months.
Island Health social worker Kirsten Kucy experienced the benefits
of being based at the Port McNeill Medical Collaborative as soon as
she relocated to the facility at 2161McNeill Road. “I was able to
work with Dr. Dave Whittaker and Nurse Peta Kelly, and the whole
team was better able to support our clients in getting the care they
need,” Kucy said.
Wellness Tip >>>
Meet the Port McNeill Medical Collaborative (Clinic) team. From
left to right: Lorraine Lines, Nurse Practitioner; Peta Kelly,
Primary Health Care nurse; Sue Bell, Port McNeill clinic medical
administration; Kirsten Kucy, Social Worker with Island Health;
Dr. Dave Whittaker; Joanie Hoddenott and Tanna Wesner,
Medical Office Assistants. Missing from the photo are Dr. Prean
Armogam, Judy Mitchell, Annetta Murgatroyd, Tina Slater and
Karen Bonnell, Mental Health and Substance Use.
Here are some tips to help you stay
healthy during flu season.
Know the symptoms Flu symptoms can include fever, head-
ache, muscle pain, runny nose, sore
throat, extreme tiredness and cough.
Children may also experience nausea,
vomiting or diarrhea.
Take care of yourself Wash your hands often with soap and
water or alcohol-based sanitizers
Stay home when you are sick or have
flu symptoms
Do not cough or sneeze into your
hands—use your upper arm or a tissue
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or
mouth
Avoid close contact with people who
are sick
Get immunized Influenza vaccine is the most effective
method we have to prevent getting sick
from the flu or passing it on to others.
For more information about influenza
and the flu vaccine visit:
http://www.viha.ca/flu/
stayinghealthy.htm
Photo by L. Mollinga
Stay healthy during flu season Welcome to the Mount Waddington community newsletter
This quarterly publication will keep
you up to date on health services in
northern Vancouver Island.
Is there a health topic you would like to
see in this newsletter? Please email
your suggestions to Debra Wall:
For other useful information, please
visit: www.viha.ca/about_viha/
community/mt_waddington.htm
Welcome >>>
www.viha.ca/about_viha/community/mt_waddington.htm Page 3
More from the Port Hardy Primary Health Care Centre celebration >>>
Island Health has an easy way for you to get answers to
your questions about health services in Mount Waddington.
You can now call 1-855-902-6048 or text 250-230-6048
and an Island Health staff person dedicated to answering
the numbers will help you find the services that are right
for you, your family members and loved ones.
Calls and texts are answered Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. If the number is busy when you call, leave a
message and your call will be returned.
The information provided will be specific to services in
the Mount Waddington regional district boundaries and
you can call or text from anywhere in Canada.
The numbers are connected with the single referral
form—one form with all the information that you provide
that follows you from your initial contact until your care
is complete—that is used in the hospitals and clinics
across Mount Waddington.
The form and numbers are part of the work we are doing
to ensure that clients and patients are connected with the
health services they need.
Single number for health service enquiries
The numbers do not replace any existing numbers including 9-1-1 or 8-1-1 services.
Call 9-1-1 in a medical emergency or life-threatening injury.
“The opening of the centre is highly regarded as it
presents a unique opportunity for Island Health and First
Nations to work together and achieve the greater good
for all.” – Ross Hunt, Jr., Kwakiutl Band Council
“I am amazed that today, less than three years later from the start of talking about it, we have this building.”
– Alyson Hagan-Johnson, referring to the Mount Waddington Collaborative Working Group and its community-led plan aimed
at strengthening and stabilizing culturally safe health services in the Mount Waddington region
“This is really indicative of where we’re going as far as
partnerships with the Health Authority these days. We’re
in a different place than we were 10 or 15 years ago; this
is feeling really good.” – Dean Wilson, Gwa’sala-
’Nakwaxda’xw First Nation
Chief Hunt and the Kwakiutl singers and drummers lead the crowd
in a dance at the building completion celebration at the new centre.
“The centre represents Island Health’s continued
commitment to support accessible, culturally safe and
sustainable health care services for Mount Waddington-
area residents.” – Alison Mitchell, Director of Health
Services, Mount Waddington/Strathcona
Local Working Group and Service Integration Team updates
Local Working Group teams up to form the Collaborative Working Group
Over the last several months, the Local Working Group
Implementation Committee (LWG) conducted a review of
its goals and purpose in order to prepare for the next phase
of work to strengthen and stabilize health services in
Mount Waddington.
As a result of the review, the LWG has joined with the Mount
Waddington chapter of the Rural Division of Family Practice
to become the Mount Waddington Collaborative Working
Group (CWG).
The newly formed group will report to the Rural and Remote
Collaborative Services Committee (made up of the Division of
Family Practice, Island Health and the Ministry of Health) and
the Island Health Steering Committee.
The first meeting of the CWG took place on November 19
where it determined its co-chairs, Dr. David Whittaker and
Shirley Ackland, reviewed the membership and started
developing a go-forward strategic plan based on the outstanding
recommendations in the Mount Waddington Health Services
Stabilization Working Group report and current state of health
services.
The CWG will now look at the progress that has been made
toward solutions for a sustainable health system in the
Mount Waddington region, the work that still needs to be done
and how it can be accomplished.
Visit Island Health’s webpage Mt. Waddington Health Services
Stabilization Working Group April 2012 to review the report.
For information about the Rural Division of Family Practice,
visit: https://www.divisionsbc.ca/rural-remote/home
Service Integration Team
The Service Integration Team (SIT) is a collaboration
between Island Health staff, the Mount Waddington Health
Network, a patient and North Island First Nations. The SIT
meets monthly to further develop a multi-disciplinary approach
to improve the health of Mount Waddington residents and their
health care experience.
Here are some SIT accomplishments in fall 2014:
The Most Responsible Clinician/Huddle Working Group
is planning a small pilot of the most responsible role and the
process for cross-program care planning huddles to support the
care of a specific patient.
In the pilot, two staff—one each from Home and Community
Care and Mental Health and Substance Use—will act as the
most responsible clinician for one client whose care spans a
number of program areas.
The working group continues to explore what the most
responsible clinician and other clinicians would each document,
where and how the care plan would be shared and updated.
Professional Practice is being consulted regarding these questions.
Meanwhile, the working group is exploring how to bring the
most responsible clinician role and cross-program care planning
huddles to life more broadly.
An Evaluation Working Group has formed to evaluate all
of the work being done to integrate services in the region. The
evaluation will look at how all the service integration work,
once implemented, has influenced the health of people living
in Mount Waddington.
A Participatory Evaluation approach will be used where
stakeholders actively engage in developing the evaluation and
all phases of its implementation. Working group members are
orienting to a new toolkit that will provide them with a variety
of approaches such as photo voice, case studies, surveys,
interviews, focus groups, capturing stories, most significant
change and data review to evaluate changes.
The group members include Alison Mitchell, Sara Gogo,
Rebecca Olesen, Lisa Greer, Alyson Hagan-Johnson, Shelley
Tice, Sherry Gill and Karen Berezon.
Members of the Service Integration Team are partnering with
the Mount Waddington Health Network to participate in
community health network forums throughout Mount
Waddington. We will share our successes towards service
integration, revisit themes from the 2013 engagement events,
share updates and listen and learn from each other about current
interests and needs. Watch for the Health Network forum in your
community!
Integrating health and wellness >>>
Mount Waddington Community Update - An Island Health Publication