From the Primary Care Alliance

Government’s December announcement regarding an additional injection of $200 million into stabilizing primary care in Alberta, $100 million of which is said to be coming early this year, was welcome news. If delivered in short-order, this short-term gap filler may help struggling family physicians across the province to keep their practices open in these desperate times.

AMA conducted a survey this month of family and rural generalist physicians to gauge the viability of their practices. The results were very concerning. 91% of family doctors are concerned that their practices will not survive if help doesn't arrive soon. Without immediate support, one in five family docs say their practices will not make it for more than six months and only 21% feel they will be able to survive for a full year. You can read more about the results in the January 23 AMA President’s Letter. 

Primary care leaders continue to work to mitigate the crisis in the health care system, and the sooner the money can begin to flow the better. To that end, the AMA is asking every family, rural and PCN physician to take action. The AMA has a new, easy-to-use video tool that is designed to help put a face to the crisis we are facing in family medicine. Physicians are asked to take a couple of minutes to record a 20 second video that includes your name, where you work and the impact the crisis is having on you, your patients, and your practice. Please take a few moments to help us raise our collective voice.

We are also looking forward to implementation of the various health care system reorganizations and implementation of the recommendations coming out of the Modernizing Alberta's Primary Health Care System (MAPS) initiative. 

The PCA continues to work with the various stakeholders as this process unfolds and we will continue to keep you updated.

Dr. Ema Gye
Chair
Primary Care Alliance
 

Breaking down the silos of care

Sharing patient information between clinic EMRs and Alberta Netcare improves continuity of care, which is why 64% of family physicians have already adopted CII/CPAR (Community Information Integration & Central Patient Attachment Registry). Dr. Michelle Warren says breaking down those silos of care is critical to her work as a family physician.

Join your colleagues on CII/CPAR today! 

The ACFP’s Thursday Evening Webinars “The Art of Clinical Communication”

On Thursday, February 1, join guest speaker Dr. Tina Nicholson from 7-8 p.m. for a valuable conversation about the vital role verbal and non-verbal communication plays in physician-patient encounters. Webinar attendees will also learn how to recognize cultural and age-related nuances that may challenge and/or enrich discussions with patients, all while gaining evidence-based techniques to advance their own communication skills.

Registration is free and open to both physicians and medical home colleagues. To learn more and to register, visit the link below.

Final chance to enter and win back Your FMS registration !

Register by end of day today (January 31) to have your name entered into the ACFP’s January Prize Draws including your chance to win back your Family Medicine Summit Registration! Alberta’s premier conference for family physicians remains a hybrid event, meaning all attendees can earn up to 21.0 Maintpro+ ® credits through exceptional synchronous and asynchronous learning opportunities. 

Come learn with your colleagues and develop your skills

The Physician Champion Network supported by AMA ACTT (Accelerating Change Transformation Team) offers a space for physicians to learn and develop leadership skills together and share their experiences and expertise in a supportive community environment.

A schedule of webinars for 2024 has been released. The next session focuses on techniques to de-escalate conflict, followed by sessions on tips and tools to support completing CPSA Physician Practice Improvement Program (PPIP) requirements.

Want to learn more and join the network? Visit the link below.

In other news

Strep A resources

There has been an increase in group A streptococcal (GAS) and invasive group A streptococcal (iGAS) infections in Alberta. The underlying reason(s) for the increase remain unclear. 
Alberta Health and Alberta Health Services are actively monitoring the situation and encourage healthcare providers to be aware of GAS signs and symptoms, testing, and treatment options, and to consider GAS and iGAS in the differential diagnosis as appropriate.
GAS can cause various infections including pharyngitis, skin and soft tissue infections, and less commonly, scarlet fever, rheumatic fever, necrotizing fasciitis, and toxic shock syndrome. 
Symptoms can be vague and include swelling, chills, muscle and joint aches, macular rash, bullae, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, malaise, and pain of unusual severity. 
Antibiotic treatment is recommended for those with confirmed GAS pharyngitis to prevent Rheumatic Fever and rare suppurative complications.
Resources for primary care providers include:

• Clinical decision tools, such as the Centor criteria, provide guidance on who to test for

• Practical information for management of GAS pharyngitis in children (and more generally) can be found here at cps.ca

• For provincial management and reporting on GAS, please visit the Alberta Disease Management Guidelines for GAS and iGAS

• For more information on Group A Streptococcal diseases, Scarlet Fever, and Rheumatic Fever please visit: 

  • The Government of Canada: Scarlet Fever Fact Sheet

  • CDC: Diseases Caused by Group A Strep 

  • The Government of Canada: Group A Streptococcal diseases for health professionals

Looking to improve transitions in care?

Check out this infographic from AHS outlining steps primary care providers can take to help patients transition smoothly between home, hospital and medical home. It also shows the latest data on follow-up care processes.
View the infographic; it’s part of the Home to Hospital to Home Transitions initiative, which supports primary care teams in improving transitions in care. 

Laboratory workflow to address multiple orders in an outpatient setting

Please ensure that lab requisitions are correctly filled out. APL staff are processing multiple requests to ensure accuracy. For more information view full bulletin. 

Enhanced lipid reporting a success

With your help over 21,000 Albertans have been screened for cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and treatment has increased by 14% for those deemed statin indicated. Over 2,000 have accessed the MyHealth CVD patient education materials. 
Learn more: video, one-pager and infographic.
For questions or ELR support, contact ELR@ahs.ca.

Ethics Lunch 'n' Learn series

The Ethics Lunch 'n' Learn Series consists of 30-minute, case-based discussions exploring everyday health care issues through an ethics lens, along with a robust Q&A portion. Log in to register. 
This year's topics: 

• Ethical Considerations in Care Planning after a Suicide Attempt – February 22 & 23, 2024

• The Ethics of Behavioural Agreements – March 21 & 22, 2024

• Resource Allocation: Ethics at a health system level – April 25 & 26, 2024

• No way home?: Ethical issues in pediatric care across the urban-rural divide – May 23 & 24, 2024

Caregiver-centred care education

University of Alberta’s Dr. Parmar and Caregivers Alberta collaborate to inspire healthcare providers to deliver Caregiver-Centered Care Education. Their workshops engage staff in strategies that strengthen the partnership between care provider and caregiver. E-modules information.

HealthChange e-module

Do you want to learn more about evidence-informed patient-centred care and supporting patients with health behavior change? HealthChange Alberta now offers three self-directed e-Modules to get you started. Complete them to prepare for the virtual interactive workshop or as a HealthChange refresher.

Learn more at HealthChange Methodology | Alberta Health Services

HealthChange Trainer Training
Do you want the delivery of patient-centred care and health behaviour change support to be consistent and coordinated across your team? Having your own HealthChange Trainer can help you get there. Trainers are experts in HealthChange: they can deliver the workshops and guide your team through implementation. Learn more and apply for the April/May Trainer Training session by February 9.

• Trainer recruitment

• Trainer recruitment process

Alberta’s Pathways Hub – Feedback Wanted

The Provincial Pathways Unit (PPU) is requesting assistance from primary care providers in reviewing the pathways below – please explore and email AlbertaPathways@ahs.ca if you have feedback.
All pathways developed with the PPU are designed with a network of partners including patient and family advisors, primary care providers, specialists, and other multidisciplinary clinical professionals as required. 

Abnormal Uterine Bleeding and Post-Menopausal Bleeding Clinical and Patient Pathways:  

• These pathways indicate what investigations are recommended, provide management options for in the community and determine when specialty care might be needed

• The pathways include considerations for trauma informed care and offer links to relevant Alberta guidelines including STI treatment, blood transfusion guidelines and iron-deficiency anemia pathways.  

Lower Limb Ischemia Clinical and Patient Pathways: 

• This pathway supports clinicians with the conservative management of patients who experience lower limb claudication. The clinical pathway also presents severity thresholds for referral. An important feature is that referral is based on a patient’s reported severity of symptoms and any quality of life or mobility impacts

• The accompanying patient pathway is a resource that provides expanded information for patients to help address whole-person health considerations. 

Provincial Adult Vascular Surgery Referral Pathway: 

• A new provincial referral pathway was developed to ensure the appropriate amount of information is included throughout the referral process to triage the patient as quickly as possible

• Please provide feedback for this referral pathway (or others) in this form. 

Explore more pathways at albertapathways.ca. 

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