Overview of Operation Health Protection: Activities to Date

1
Overview of Operation Health Protection
Activities to Date

• alPHa All-Members Meeting
• April 22nd , 2005

2
Operation Health Protection

• In June 2004, the Minister released Operation
  Health Protection An Action
• Plan to Prevent Threats to Our Health and to
  Promote a Healthy Ontario
• Vision A revitalized system that supports the
  health of Ontarians, through
• concerted action to prevent disease and protect
  against known and emerging
• diseases.
• Strategic Priorities
• Creation of a Health Protection and Promotion
  Agency
• Health Emergency Management
• Infection Control and Communicable Disease
  Capacity
• Infrastructure for Health System Preparedness
• Health Human Resources
• Public Health Renewal

3
Health Protection and Promotion Agency

• Goal
• Creation of a new Health Protection and
  Promotion Agency that will promote and protect
  the health of Ontarians, provide laboratory and
  epidemiological services, as well as translate
  research and information into practical
  assistance, tools, advice and support to
  Ontarios health care providers.
• Activities to Date
• Cross-jurisdictional review of other Public
  Health Agency models
• Agency Implementation Task Force struck two
  meetings held to date

4
Health Protection and Promotion Agency (Contd)

• Agency Implementation Task Force Next Steps
• Roundtables Infectious Diseases Health
  Promotion, Chronic Diseases and Injury
  Prevention Environmental Health Spring 2005
• Interim Report Summer 2005
• Examining options for interim governing body in
  2005
• Laboratory Review
• RFP issued
• Contract awarded
• Results of review in summer 2005

5
Methodology Inputs for Agency Development
Reference Panel
INTERIM BOARD FINAL REPORT End of Dec. 2005
INTERIM REPORT End of June 2005
Implementation Planning
Round Tables
AITF
Commissioned Research
6
Agency Development Overview of Workplan
PHASE ONE
Governance and Core Functions March June 2005
Interim Report (June)
PHASE TWO
Interim Board Leadership (December)
Implementation Planning July Nov 2005
Implementation planning activity will be
guided by and dependent on the proposed roles and
responsibilities of the Interim Board and CEO
7
Health Emergency Management

• Goal
• Strengthening of Health Emergency Management
  to ensure that Ontario has the capacity to
  respond effectively to health emergencies.
• Activities to Date
• Creation of the Emergency Management Unit
• Formation of the Emergency Medical Assistance
  Team (EMAT)
• Release of the Ontario Health Pandemic Influenza
  Plan (OHPIP)
• Completion of MOHLTC Emergency Response Plan
• Hospital Emergency Preparedness Initiative

8
Infection Control Communicable Disease Capacity

• Goal
• Enhance Ontarios capacity to prevent, manage
  and respond to existing and emerging infectious
  diseases, as well as future outbreaks.
• Activities to Date
• Provincial Infectious Diseases Advisory Committee
  established in summer 2004
• Three sub-committees fully functional each has
  established work priorities for the next 6 months
  
• Fourth sub-committee to be established within
  coming months Communicable Diseases

9
Infection Control Communicable Disease
Capacity (Contd)

• Regional Networks
• Implementation of 4 initial networks underway
  Southeastern Ontario (Kingston), Champlain
  (Ottawa), Hamilton/Niagara and Northwestern
  Ontario
• Guiding principles for network development
  implementation are being developed by PIDAC
  working group including standard job
  descriptions, terms of reference and MOUs
• Infrastructure components now being put into
  place in each of the 4 regions
• Network Coordinator
• Medical Lead
• Network Steering Committee
• Each network will be required to conduct an
  inventory of Infectious Diseases/Infection
  Control resources (human, education,
  standards/guidelines, etc.) within the region for
  acute, LTC and community based care

10
Infection Control Communicable Disease
Capacity (Contd)

• Infection Control Training
• Steering Committee struck to assist the Ministry
  with development and implementation of an
  initiative to deliver infection control core
  competency education to front-line healthcare
  workers. Membership includes key stakeholder
  associations- CHICA-Canada, OHA, OMA, RNAO, LTC
  (for and not-for profit), OPHA
• Core competency content being developed by a
  working group of the Steering Committee work is
  well underway
• Ultimate audience for the education is all
  front-line healthcare workers to be implemented
  in a phased manner, targeting different portions
  of the health sector (acute, LTC, community) as
  each phase moves forward
• The first training tool (s) e-learning-based
  scheduled to be piloted in a number of acute care
  facilities late spring/early summer of 2005

11
Infrastructure for Health System Preparedness

• Goal
• Modernize Ontarios processes for collecting
  and analyzing information related to infectious
  diseases, and of delivering timely information to
  healthcare providers and to the public as
  required.
• Activities to Date
• Public Health e-Health Council established
• Participation in Canada Health Infoways
  Surveillance Steering Committee
• Public Health Communications Portal
• Integrated Public Health Information System
  (iPHIS) for Communicable Disease reporting and
  case/contact management

12
Health Human Resources

• Goal
• Create a made-for-Ontario health human
  resources strategy to support the rebuilding of
  public health capacity and to ensure appropriate
  surge capacity in an emergency across all health
  sectors.
• Activities to Date
• Ministrys Health Human Resources Strategy is
  under development for example, cancer area has
  been developed
• Recommendations for public health human resources
  have been integrated into the terms of reference
  for the Capacity Review Committee

13
Public Health Renewal Increased Independence of
CMOH

• Goal
• Increase the independence of the Chief
  Medical Officer of Health (CMOH).
• Activities to Date
• Bill 124 to increase in the independence of the
  CMOH was introduced in the House on October 14th,
  2004
• The Bill received Royal Assent on December 16th,
  2004

14
Public Health Renewal System Enhancement

• Goals
• Rebuild public health capacity within the
  province and enhance public health leadership and
  accountability.
• Improve system collaboration and partnerships
  between public health and other parts of the
  healthcare system.
• Activities to Date
• Capacity Review Committee (CRC) struck January
  2005
• Developmental work has been undertaken on a
  Public Health Performance Report
• The provincial funding share for public health
  has increased to 55 as of January 1st, 2005