Each year, Research Infosource Inc. releases a list of Canada’s Top 40 Research Hospitals, which is determined by total research spend by institute. Investments come primarily from philanthropy, government and industry, and support the innovative research activities at each organization.

“Ontario research hospitals play a tremendous role in driving health care innovation in Canada,” said Anthony Dale, President and CEO of the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA). “Investments in hospital-based research have led to significant clinical advancements and improvements in the delivery of health care services. Moving forward, as Canada’s population grows and ages, Ontario’s hospitals will play an anchor role in reimagining and redesigning health care services in their communities to meet this evolving need.”

Hospital-based research occurs at the intersection of patients, clinicians, clinician-scientists, and other researchers with linkages to universities, medical schools, and leading-edge biotech firms. Nowhere else are researchers as connected to patients or as involved in the delivery of care as in hospitals. In recent years, hospitals have made breakthroughs in areas such as kidney, respiratory and cardiovascular disease.

Ontario research hospitals attracted $1.82 billion in investment in 2021-22, an increase of 6.5 per cent over 2020-2021. This investment allows the sector to drive innovations that transform patient care and health care operations. Hospitals have also fostered strategic partnerships through national networks to improve Canada’s clinical trials and pandemic preparedness.

Ontario’s research hospitals also attract and nurture scientific talent and contribute to Canada’s economic growth and prosperity. Since 2017-18, Ontario’s research hospitals have generated nearly 1,400 intellectual property disclosures and $162 million in commercialization revenue from more than 680 products, which are critical to strengthening the Canadian economy and competitiveness on a global scale.

“The OHA is proud of Ontario’s research hospitals for their contributions in improving health care delivery and health outcomes,” said Dale. “Moving forward, the OHA and its member hospitals will continue to play a leadership role in re-engineering hospital-based care so that scientific, technological and clinical breakthroughs are adopted.”

The following Ontario hospitals have been named among Canada’s Top 40 Research Hospitals for 2023:

1. University Health Network
2. Hospital for Sick Children
3. The Ottawa Hospital
4. London Health Sciences Centre/St. Joseph’s Health Care London
5. Hamilton Health Sciences
6. Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
7. Unity Health Toronto
8. Sinai Health
9. Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
10. St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton
11. Kingston Health Sciences Centre
12. Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario
13. Baycrest
14. Women’s College Hospital
15. The Royal
16. Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital
17. Bruyère
18. Hôpital Montfort
19. Trillium Health Partners
20. Health Sciences North

The post Half Of Canada’s Top 40 Research Hospitals Are In Ontario appeared first on Muskoka411.

While the organization is so grateful to the blood, platelet and plasma donors who supported Canada’s Lifeline over the summer, the impacts of severe weather and wildfires mean they need many more people to book now to help meet patients’ needs.

As people get back into their fall routines, it’s a great time to double-check their eligibility to donate. Even if they thought they could never donate again, they may be able to resume because of updates to the donation criteria. Donor eligibility criteria undergo frequent revisions, resulting in changes based on current scientific evidence. As a result, thousands more may now be eligible to donate blood.

Remember, if anyone has questions or isn’t sure about their eligibility, they can call to speak with a trained health professional at 1-888-2-DONATE (1-888-236-6283).

All donor eligibility information in this article is current as of the date of publication. The very latest information is always available on Canadian Blood Services’ ABCs of eligibility page.

The post So You Think You Can’t Donate Blood? Check To Be Sure appeared first on Muskoka411.

The post Canada’s Wonderland Donates Tickets To Health Care Workers In Barrie, Toronto And Beyond appeared first on Muskoka411.

The Government of Ontario has been a strong funding partner throughout the COVID-19 crisis. The OHA greatly appreciates this continued support as it is essential to ensuring that the people of Ontario are able to access hospital-based care as our population grows and ages

The investments announced today will provide hospitals in communities across Ontario with additional financial resources that will be invested in maintaining access to vitally important services. The government has also previously announced that it is making funding for 3,100 temporary pandemic-related hospital beds permanent. These are important actions that will strengthen the underlying capabilities of Ontario’s hospitals.

Historically, on a per capita basis, Ontario hospitals have had very low numbers of beds compared to other provinces and countries. Ontario had the same number of hospital beds at the start of the pandemic as it did 20 years ago – with a population that has grown by 2.8 million people.

Hospitals also face significant capacity pressures due to challenges across the continuum of care. Recently, the number of patients waiting in Ontario hospitals for a more appropriate level of care (ALC), such as home and community care and long-term care, reached an all-time high of nearly 5,800.

In the time ahead, it is essential that the Province of Ontario implement long-term health services capacity planning and continue to work in partnership to address the significant health human resource challenges facing our province while ensuring that surge capacity in Ontario’s highly efficient hospital sector is built up for a population of 14.5 million people.”    –    Anthony Dale, President and CEO, Ontario Hospital Association

SOURCE Ontario Hospital Association

The post OHA Welcomes New Investment In Hospital Services appeared first on Muskoka411.

The Ontario government is continuing to accelerate its efforts to add hospital beds and build up the province’s health care workforce to ensure patients can continue to access the health care they need when they need it.

The post Ontario Continues To Add Hospital Beds And Build Up Health Workforce appeared first on Muskoka411.

The award is presented annually to recipients who exemplify MAHC’s values of Accountability, Respect, Optimism, Leadership and Engagement, and recognizes those who have made significant achievements in patient- and family-centred care, outstanding management of people, financial or material resources, successfully completed a major project or special assignment beyond what is normally expected, and/or demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to patient safety.

“Each year the number of nominations is quite remarkable, but this year is even more so and cause for celebration in itself,” says Board Chair Cameron Renwick. “This year there were 38 total submissions resulting in 24 individuals being nominated, the most ever in the history of the award. This is truly reflective of the true spirit of team and family at MAHC, and only reinforces the 2021 theme of Staff Appreciation Week: We Rise, We Heal, We Overcome.”

The winners of the 2021 Board Award of Excellence are:

Amy Gargal, District Stroke Coordinator

Karen Loates, Imaging Receptionist

Dr. Melanie Mar, Chief of Family Medicine – HDMH Site

Sarah Teutloff, Pharmacy Technician

“On behalf of the Board, I would like to further recognize all of the 2021 nominees,” says Renwick. “The remarks and examples that are provided through the nomination process make the decision to choose only four recipients very difficult. To be recognized by your peers and colleagues for the outstanding work you do every day in this way is a reason to celebrate. Congratulations to all of the nominees, and congratulations to the winners on their achievement!”

The nominees further included:

Andrea Clarke, Patient Registration Clerk

Carmen Shakespeare, Emergency Department, Emergency Department

Dianne Smith, Midwife

Erin Roebuck, Registered Nurse, Obstetrics

Jason Devaladares, Technical Support Specialist

Jenny Pidlubney, Registered Nurse, Emergency Department/ICU Clinical Lead

Johanna Marshall, Environmental Services Aide

Kim Rose, Manager, Human Resources

Kim Schmitz, Clinical Nurse Educator

Kristin Cazabon, Manager, Inpatient & Rehabilitation Services – SMMH Site

Dr. Keith Cross, Chief of Family Medicine – SMMH Site

Laura Derbyshire, Manager, Inpatient & Rehabilitation Services and District Stroke Centre – HDMH Site

Liz Parrott, Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff

Luke Seward, Imaging Charge Technologist

Mike Wells, Security Officer

Roy French, Technical Support Specialist

Dr. Sheena Branigan, Chief of Obstetrics

Sheila Quinton, Registered Nurse, Emergency Department

Tammy Devoe, Registered Nurse, Medical/Surgical Unit

Terry-Lynn Brown, Ward Clerk, Medical/Surgical Unit

A virtual announcement of the 2021 Board Award of Excellence is posted on MAHC’s YouTube channel.

The post Four Receive 2021 Board Award Of Excellence From MAHC appeared first on Muskoka411.

The Friends on the Muskoka Lakes is made up of over 20 families that wish to remain anonymous, and while members have donated to the foundation before, this is the first donation from the group as a whole. They hope it will encourage seasonal and permanent residents alike to think about the importance of the hospital to the Muskoka region, according to the announcement. The matched donations will help cover the hospital’s pandemic-related expenses by request of the group, Miller said, addressing costs such as 12 acute care beds that were purchased at $15,000 each to prepare for a possible surge of COVID-19 patients. Additional funding from the matched donations will go toward other hospital needs such as equipment costs.

“Although Muskoka may not be our full-time home, it is our home, nonetheless,” a spokesperson for the group said in the announcement. “We view South Muskoka Memorial Hospital as our hospital and feel a responsibility to support it.”

The emergency department at South Muskoka Memorial Hospital sees about 22,000 visits annually with nearly 25 per cent of those visits happening in July and August, according to the foundation. Six out of 10 patients that go to the emergency department require additional testing, including x-rays, other imaging modalities and lab work.

“The generosity of donors such as the Friends on the Muskoka Lakes is critically important to maintaining South Muskoka Memorial Hospital’s standing as a world-class health provider,” Miller said in the announcement. “We hope other Muskoka residents will be inspired to join the Friends on the Muskoka Lakes in this gift-matching opportunity and support the hospital’s critical work during this unprecedented time.”

To make a donation as part of the initiative, contact the South Muskoka Hospital Foundation at 705-645-4404 ext. 3193, or donate online on the foundation’s website. 

The post Group Of Muskoka Cottagers Offers To Match Up To $250,000 In Donations For South Muskoka Hospital Foundation appeared first on Muskoka411.

Norman Miller, MPP for Parry Sound-Muskoka, is pleased to see the long-standing funding inequity for small- and medium-sized hospitals addressed.

On March 25, Ontario released a fiscal update, Ontario’s Action Plan: Responding to COVID-19. This plan recognized the historic funding shortfalls for small- and medium-sized hospitals and will ensure continued financial stability by making the $68 million in top-up funding from 2019/20 part of the base funding for these hospitals going forward. The plan also ensures that all publicly funded hospitals will receive a minimum of a 1 per cent increase.

“This is good news for our medium-sized hospitals in Parry Sound-Muskoka,” said Miller. “In the past our hospitals had to request these additional funds each year, and were never guaranteed a successful outcome. This made it difficult for our hospitals to plan for future expenses. I have long been advocating for a fix to the funding inequities faced by our medium-sized hospitals and I am happy to see our government has addressed this issue.”

This announcement is part of $935 million more in new investments for Ontario’s hospitals this year identified in Ontario’s Action Plan. Of that funding, $594 million will be directed to support hospitals to meet current and future demands for regular services. This represents approximately a 3 per cent overall increase in funding to the hospital sector in Ontario.

Locally, Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare’s base funding has increased by $4,880,500, with $3,189,000 of that becoming annualized. And West Parry Sound Health Centre’s base funding has increased by $2,676,500, with $1,599,000 of that becoming annualized. This will greatly increase their ability to plan for future needs. There will be additional funding available to hospitals to help cover the expenses related to COVID-19.

“This announcement is great news for our communities in Muskoka and area, and we appreciate the ongoing advocacy by Mr. Miller for our multi-site hospital,” said MAHC CEO Natalie Bubela. “This additional funding helps to ease MAHC’s operating pressures, and we will continue to work with the North Simcoe Muskoka LHIN, Ministry of Health and provincial government for incremental funding to close our operating gap.”

“We appreciate the significant investments being made toward the provision of health care in our community, especially in these difficult and uncertain times,” said Donald Sanderson, WPSHC CEO. “The arrival of COVID-19 has added significant pressure to our financial challenges. Until a vaccine is developed, COVID-19 will continue to fundamentally change the way in which we provide care. This will no doubt contribute to the current fiscal and operational uncertainty facing West Parry Sound Health Centre. We are thankful to our MPP Norm Miller for his ongoing advocacy in support of sustainable funding for our health centre and community.”

This year our hospitals have been hit with mounting expenses related to COVID-19 and the loss of some of their non-government funding streams, such as parking and cafeteria sales. There will be additional funding to cover COVID-19 related expenses which will be distributed at a later date based on the expenses incurred by each hospital.

The post Miller Releases Statement On Funding For Hospitals appeared first on Muskoka411.