|
The truth about Canadian health care: it is in need of transformation
OTTAWA, Nov. 26, 2012, 2012 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) --
www.conferenceboard.ca
Health care in Canada is running a deficit
in more ways than just the fiscal side. The deficit in performance
comes from a 1960s model of system management, ill-defined goals, and
an ideological, values-driven debate dominated by vested interests,
rather than a dialogue - that includes patients - about the best ways
to provide health services.
The Conference Board's recent Summit on Sustainable Health and Health Care - featuring some of the leading thinkers in Canada - highlighted the
need for transformation in the health care system. The post-Summit
report, The Inconvenient Truths About Canadian Health Care, identifies five priorities for reform.
"The evidence is strongly mounting that we are incorrect in believing
that we have the best health care system in the world from the
perspective of relative effectiveness and efficiency of the services
provided," said Daniel Muzyka, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Conference Board and
co-author of the publication.
"A number of issues clearly articulated and shared during the Summit,
fueled by an aging population and internal cost pressures, make it
clear that we have to face some 'inconvenient truths' when it comes to
health care."
For years, The Conference Board of Canada has given a "B" to Canada's
health care system, most recently ranking it 10(th) out of 17 countries in the 2012 How Canada Performs report card. Other analyses have shown that Canada has comparatively
high spending, but modest health outcomes.
As one Summit participant noted, pouring more resources into a system
that isn't configured to achieve the outcomes society wishes, and
doesn't necessarily focus on the drivers of health and wellness, is
like "pouring water into sand."
The Conference Board identifies five priorities to spur health care
transformation:
1. Fix the gateway to the health care system. Primary care, not the
emergency room, should be the first contact point within the
health care system and the key access point for other
health-related services. There was a strong consensus that
interdisciplinary family care teams should be the standard model
for primary care.
2. Invest in and use technology in the health care system,
particularly information and communication technology. More
intensive and standardized use of information technology will
allow patient information to be collected and shared seamlessly,
making treatment more effective (better outcomes and fewer errors)
as well as efficientâ thereby boosting the productivity of
the system overall.
3. Change the compensation system and related labour contracts for
health care professionals. Compensation models need be linked more
to patient and community health care outcomes and less to
activities such as treatment and consultation.
4. Focus on the state of the health and wellness of Canadians
overall. A healthy population should be our goal. A healthy
population will demand fewer acute care services caused by
preventable chronic diseases.
5. Build a more transparent and accountable health care system with
respect to goals, management, and performance.
These reports are part of the research program of the Conference Board's
Canadian Alliance for Sustainable Health Care (CASHC). Launched in 2011, CASHC is a five-year Conference Board program of
research and dialogue. It will delve deeply into facets of Canada's
health care challenge, including the financial, workplace, and
institutional dimensions, in an effort to develop forward-looking
qualitative and quantitative analysis and solutions to make the system
more sustainable.
Link: http://www.conferenceboard.ca/CASHC/research/2012/inconvenient_truths.aspx
SOURCE: CONFERENCE BOARD OF CANADA
To view this news release in HTML formatting, please use the following URL: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/November2012/26/c3466.html
SOURCE: CONFERENCE BOARD OF CANADA
Brent Dowdall, Media Relations, Tel.: 613- 526-3090 ext. 448
E-mail:corpcomm@conferenceboard.ca
[ Back To HTML5's Homepage ]
|