Our shared purpose may 2018

Providence Healthcare est. 1857

St. Joseph’s Health Centre est. 1921

St. Michael’s Hospital est. 1892

We had hoped to have our network name approved prior to the coming provincial election . . . and we were very close. After collecting lots of great input from an online survey sent internally and to residents around our three sites, and from dozens of in-person interviews, we have made a few key decisions. Firstly, the three current site names are important - they have strong equity and should continue to be used. That means any network logo or brand mark will feature them prominently. We have also decided the network name is going to be three words; the second word will be “Health” and the last word will be “Toronto.” That leaves the first word of our new network name, which we have determined will take a little more time to land on just the right word. We came down to a short list of three options that we believed underscored the

VOL. 2 • NO. 4 • MAY 8, 2018

Where are we with our naming process? strength of our integration and respected the legacy of all three sites. When we tested those names however, we received feedback that they didn’t optimally support our objectives for our network name. Because your thoughts and opinions matter greatly, we’ve decided to pause on this process and regroup. Our goal is to come up with a name that will inspire everyone across the network and remind our patients, residents, clients, families and community members of our long tradition of excellent and inclusive care. If that means our naming process takes a bit longer than we hoped, so be it. Better to take some time in getting it right than rushing a name that doesn’t meet our objectives. So, stay tuned a little longer. We’ll be sure to let you know about our new network name as soon as possible.

oursharedpurpose.com Our Shared Purpose is an internal newsletter intended to keep staff at all three sites informed about our integration and transition plans, as well as highlight key achievements and activities at each of the sites. Our Shared Purpose is published monthly by the Communications teams at Providence, St. Joseph’s and St. Michael’s. If you have any questions about any of the articles, please visit oursharedpurpose.com to submit your inquiry. OUR SHARED PURPOSE • VOL. 2 • NO. 4 • MAY 8, 2018 • page 4

#yesthisisnursing A message from Maggie Bruneau, Mary MacLeod, Sonya Canzian, Chief Nursing Executives.

of nursing, enabling us to contribute even further to enhancing the lives and care experiences of our patients.

Happy Nursing Week! This year’s theme #yesthisisnursing, as identified by the Canadian Nurses Association, reminds us that the nursing profession contributes to the advancement and improvement of population health, patient care delivery and outcomes across a variety of clinical and non-clinical roles. This Nursing Week, we want to recognize, celebrate and thank nurses across our network for your outstanding contributions to patient care.

Nursing Week is celebrated internationally on the week of Florence Nightingale’s birthday, who, in addition to leading nursing into a profession, laid the foundation for nursing’s emphasis on social determinants of health – something that continues even today as a key focus of our network – to help the most underprivileged and create healthy communities.

As nurses, we have the unique privilege to be present in many of life’s most significant moments. We are there to welcome a new life, hold a patient’s hand as they take their last breath, connect with compassion as patients and residents struggle with illness or families face big changes – and to deliver highly complex nursing care. We thrive as strong professionals in a collaborative environment supporting each other and our health-care colleagues during times that test our strength and provide each other the same caring as we do for our patients. Advances in medicine and technology continue to expand the profession

Nurses are the largest health provider group in Canada and our more than 3,300 nurses play a vital role in the care we provide: being with patients and their families at vulnerable times, contributing to exceptional patient and resident experiences, teaching the next generation of nurses, leading in administrative roles and through your many other contributions that take an active role in shaping the future of health care across the network and beyond our walls. Our nurses are integral to the success of our network and to the work we do every day through your care and support of our patients and residents and their families. We are so proud that you are part of our team.

OUR SHARED PURPOSE • VOL. 2 • NO. 4 • MAY 8, 2018 • page 1

The stroke and neuro unit at Providence sees a diverse group of patients in various stages of recovery. Spending anywhere from two to six weeks on the unit, the patients are there long enough to bond with their care team as they get well enough to go home. Erika Solomon, a registered practical nurse, said that’s her favourite thing about working on the unit. “Patients come in and often have a long way to go in their recovery,” she said, “which makes it even better when we see them start walking and then eventually go home. Seeing them progress is amazingly rewarding.”

“IT’S KEEPING PATIENTS SAFE AND

Erika has been working on the unit for less than a year but said she already feels like the team is family, supporting one another in order to be able to provide the best care to patients and their families. She’s getting ready to go back to school to get her nursing degree and said what’s holding her back is the fact that she loves her job so much.

GIVING THEM

“It’s an incredible feeling helping people as a nurse,” she said. “On our unit especially, people come back to visit and seeing them happy and grateful for what we were able to help with them is so fulfilling – I’m very glad to be where I am.”

EXPERIENCE”

A BETTER CECILIA & SHIRLEY

“SEEING THEM PROGRESS IS AMAZINGLY REWARDING”

Shirley and Cecilia, with the Constant Care Working Group at St. Michael’s, adapted guidelines created by the Toronto Academic Health Sciences Network (which Cecilia led the development of) to create decision-making and documentation tools which provide direction for frontline teams to determine when to implement and discontinue constant care.

ERIKA

For almost 40 years, Erlinda Gallardo has called the 3M general/ orthopaedic surgery unit at St. Joseph’s her home away from home. When people ask her what she’ll do when she retires, she laughs and says she’ll come back and volunteer. “I love this place – I think I’m part of the walls,” she said. As a team leader, Erlinda provides support to everyone on the unit – not only patients, who she sits with when needed, and families who she provides comfort to when they’re struggling with processing the diagnosis of their loved one, but also staff who she considers to be family. Her team says that some of her greatest qualities are her ability to inspire people to be efficient and effective in making sure patients receive the highest quality care, and her passion for taking care of the unit – something she says she’s always had. “My desire is to improve the lives of the patients who depend on our care,” she said. “If you don’t have passion for your work, you won’t last for very long because nursing is not an easy job – it takes courage, care and affection for your work. If I had to go back again I’d still choose nursing because I’m proud of the work we do – when patients receive the care they need, you know you’ve done your part.”

When patients with neurological vulnerability such as dementia or delirium aren’t able to effectively communicate their needs, they may display responsive behaviours which previously may have prompted St. Michael’s staff to put them under constant care – meaning an additional caregiver would be assigned to monitor them to ensure they weren’t harming themselves or others. An initiative led by the dynamic team of Cecilia Santiago, nursing practice manager and Shirley Bell, clinical nurse educator is helping guide teams on effective use of constant care and enhancing patient care.

“The unique part about this is that it’s collaborative – the healthcare teams, patients and families are part of the assessment and deciding what’s best for the patient,” said Shirley.

“[NURSING] TAKES COURAGE, CARE AND AFFECTION” ERLINDA

One of the most significant parts of the initiative is encouraging teams to get to know details about the patient that provide insight into their behavior. Shirley said one care team had difficulty with a man who consistently tried to leave the hospital every day at 9 a.m. When his friend came in to visit one day, he told the team that the patient had previously been a stockbroker and was used to buying newspapers every morning. As a result, staff members now bring newspapers in for him to read – he sits in bed and reads the business section and is no longer under constant care. “Patients have lives before they come to the hospital,” said Cecilia. “Our strategy is patient-centred and involves looking at what worked at home for patients that we can adapt for the hospital – what keeps them calm at home, what’s their sleeping routine like? It’s keeping patients safe and giving them a better experience at the same time.”