Winnipeg May 25, 2009 – On the first day of the Health Council of Canada’s Winnipeg meeting, local issues were on the agenda.
“Today’s two speakers helped to enlighten Councillors as to the specific concerns and issues of the Manitoba population – that’s exactly why we hold our meetings in different jurisdictions throughout the country,” said Jeanne Besner, Chair of the Health Council of Canada.Presenter Dr. Brian Postl, CEO of the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA), described the health care landscape of his region, and the particular sustainability challenges his organization faces.
In particular, Dr. Postl outlined the challenges presented by Aboriginal health issues and the importance of facing them head on. “In children’s hospitals, 60% of occupants are Aboriginal,” he told the council. “We have really focused on Aboriginal health.” Dr. Postl said this has included reaching out to the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and having board representation from the First Nations and Métis communities – 5 of 20 members – that reflects the population.
Overall, Dr. Postl said the WRHA has endeavoured to control administrative costs, and that having whittled them down, the authority is now second lowest only to Alberta. “We have been living within our budget,” he said, “and the latest CIHI data say Manitoba has been closer to managing to budget than any [jurisdiction] in the country.” Moreover, the WRHA has sought to maximize operating efficiencies, and to improve wait list management, to which Dr. Postl said, “We think we’ve improved what we do by 30-33%. That’s a respectable number; our later challenge will be around how we make up the other two-thirds.” Other improvements, said Dr. Postl, have related to the goal of delivering seamless health care – having access points that determine where a patient’s needs fit into the system and restructuring senior management to look at the transition of patients at the “seams,” often meaning across sectors. The WRHA has also invested time and money in the area of patient safety.
“We’ve put millions into every site, every hospital. [Now we] need to spend more time tracking the outcomes and continually learning from experience.” Dr. Postl said, “The big view is that the second year of the economic downtown will put us in a much tougher position next year.” He suggested careful planning will be required to meet the challenges.
Also speaking to council today was Dr. Brenda Elias, Assistant Professor in the Department of Community Services and Co-Director of the Centre for Aboriginal Research.
Dr. Elias described her centre’s large scale and ambitious research into Aboriginal health. A major accomplishment has been the Manitoba First Nations Health Report Card. The report card has involved linking different data sources, such as health service utilization, to the Indian Registry, in an attempt to gain insight into Aboriginal health. “In undertaking this research program,” said Dr. Elias, “We helped shape the new system that will be in place for other provinces.” Dr. Elias described the research consortium’s established knowledge translation networks, built on collaboration, and their links internationally. “It’s not just about health services utilization,” she said. “We’ve created a seamless system that looks at molecules to communities; we’re doing this to address the disparities in registered First Nations populations in Manitoba.”
Other research aims include building a First Nations Analytic Knowledge Translation Framework for Cancer Care and Control, and looking at diabetes as a risk factor for cancer.
Dr. Elias recognized the Health Council of Canada for its 2005 review of the Aboriginal Health Reporting Framework, in which the council noted that an accurate description of the health status of Aboriginals had not been realized and much work remained to be done in that area.“Your council recognized that you had to enable, expect and respect First Nations as full partners with Federal, Provincial and Territorial jurisdictions,” she said, “And that’s exactly what is being done.”
Background
The Health Council of Canada, created by the 2003 First Ministers’ Accord on Health Care Renewal is mandated to monitor and report on the progress of health care renewal in Canada. Councillors were appointed by the participating provinces, territories and the Government of Canada. For information on the Health Council of Canada and to view past reports, visit www.healthcouncilcanada.ca.
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For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
Pierre Lachaine,
Health Council of Canada – Media Relations
Phone (416) 480-7085
Cell (416) 779-4532
plachaine@healthcouncilcanada.ca