Far from the helpless patient she remembered so often depicted on TV shows, Jane felt empowered and in control as she walked into the operating room in October, 2018. Jane had been diagnosed with breast cancer and required surgery.

Jane recalls that there were so many people at the hospital that supported her throughout her journey and on the day of surgery, she felt an amazing energy from my surgical team, “One of compassion and empathy…and one that I feel is so important in healthcare.”

A particular moment that stands out for Jane took place on the day of her surgery as she and her partner Gus were waiting to speak with General Surgeon Dr. Rozario before going into the operating room. “Dr. Rozario walked in and Gus said ‘Oh there’s the boss’. Dr. Rozario turned very quickly to me and said clearly, ‘No, she’s the boss’.” Jane was immediately put at ease and thought “I have a choice. I am the one in control.”

The focus on the patient experience and the importance of the voice of the patient lasted throughout Jane’s care. “Once it was time for surgery, Lenore, my nurse, mentioned I could stand up. I was confused until I realized she was walking me instead of wheeling me into the operating room. I walked in with Lenore feeling empowered,” recalled Jane.

Instead of having to make her way back to the hospital for her appointment the day after surgery, Jane had a video chat with Dr. Rozario who wanted to make sure she was doing well and to gather feedback about her experience, “During the online appointment, he asked for feedback and sent me a survey to fill out. I was extremely impressed with the level of care. I had some comments about my discharge that I wanted to share.”

Dr. Rozario asked Jane to come back to the hospital and talk openly to staff about the positive aspects of her experience and some of the challenging moments of her care. “We understand that patients want to be a part of their healthcare, and as we organize the healthcare system around our patients, they will inevitably and rightly become the centre of everything that we do," said Dr. Rozario. “Even if your experience is 9 out of 10 that’s not good enough, we want you to have a 10 out of 10 experience.”

Jane was impressed by the level of engagement with her as a patient and the integrated approach to her care. “I truly felt that Dr. Rozario and his team appreciated the feedback and they are actually implementing changes to make sure patient experiences are the best they can be.”

Jane is an advocate for the patient voice in healthcare. “I always say that if you ask for feedback you need to be ready to act upon it – my surgeon and his whole team have received it, acted on it and I know it will make a huge difference.”

Eric is 47 years old and has polycystic kidney disease. A disease that means he will eventually need life sustaining dialysis treatments. While such a diagnosis can be overwhelming, with the encouragement of dialysis staff, Eric has been empowered to take control and learn how to administer his dialysis treatments at home.

“Dialysis cleans my blood of wastes and excess water, which is something my kidneys can no longer do.

My mother had to take the bus for an hour and a half each way to the hospital, for her dialysis treatment, three times a week,” explained Eric. “I am so fortunate to have the choice of having treatments in the comfort of my own home. 
 

Working in healthcare and dealing with traumatic or difficult situations can have a profound emotional effect on healthcare providers. Without the proper tools and support to help them manage these demands many healthcare providers can suffer from compassion fatigue.

With a vision of providing exemplary patient experiences, always, Halton Healthcare believes it is important to care for and support our staff and physicians so they can provide the best care for patients.

In early 2018, Halton Healthcare became one of the first community hospital organizations in Canada to join the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare. Funded by Halton Healthcare’s Innovation Grant Program, the implementation of the Schwartz Rounds is the result of collaboration between our Kailo Employee Wellness Program and Halton Healthcare physicians.

“Schwartz Rounds provide clinicians and frontline staff a safe and compassionate environment where they can share their stories and support one another. We have experienced incredible turnout to these sessions,” noted Dr. Stephen Chin, Chief of Hospital Medicine, Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital and Co-Chair of the Schwartz Rounds organizing committee. “Sharing emotions and experiences surrounding a difficult or traumatic situation can be therapeutic in helping healthcare providers move forward as they realize they are not alone in their work.”

The compassion shown by staff can make all the difference to a patient’s experience of care, but in order to provide compassionate care staff and physicians must, in turn, feel supported in their work.

General Surgeon Dr. Nicole Callan has participated as one of the panelists at the Schwartz Rounds. “Sometimes as caregivers we carry around many emotions about cases that happened years ago. At the Schwartz Rounds, during a discussion I got extremely emotional as I bared my soul, lots of tears – but they weren’t just mine. The outpouring of support in that room and even afterwards was unbelievable,” recalled Dr. Callan. “The experience was rejuvenating. It allowed me to refocus my energy on being more present for my patients.”

“The Rounds provide a forum where all staff, clinical and non-clinical, come together to talk about the emotional and social aspects of working in healthcare and to share their vulnerability,” explained Louisa Nedkov, Co-ordinator, Kailo Employee Wellness Program at Halton Healthcare. “The purpose is to understand the challenges and rewards that are intrinsic to providing care. The Rounds recognize that we all need support and the opportunity to explore the emotional burden of the work of our healthcare professionals.”

“I was literally watching my 38 year old husband slip away. He was passing out, not sleeping and he was having trouble getting his words out,” recalled Jennifer.

Jennifer and Andrew enjoyed a hectic but very happy life with their three young children. In addition to all their family activities, Jennifer manages a home daycare and Andrew works as a firefighter with the Toronto Fire Services. In February 2019, the unthinkable happened.

One cold evening in February, Andrew seemed “off”. Andrew appeared lost during his last couple of shifts at the fire hall and friends had also noticed that he seemed ‘unusually irritable and at times despondent’. Everyone chalked Andrew’s change in behaviour up to sleep deprivation. Everyone, that is, except his wife, Jennifer.

“I had asked Andrew why he hadn’t interacted with the kids during dinner and his answer was ‘because the kids’ mittens are in the basement,’ said Jennifer. “That is how we ended up in the Georgetown Hospital Emergency Room.”

Be it breakfast, lunch or dinner, a meal always tastes better if it is served up with some companionship, care and conversation.

Volunteers at Halton Healthcare have partnered with Patient Care Manager Jacqueline Goodban and nursing staff to create the ‘Peachy Patient Meal Support Program’ on the Complex Transitional Care and 2 North Regional Units at Milton District Hospital (MDH).

“Nourishment is an essential part of care with the senior population to prevent functional decline,” explained Claudia Aguilar, Registered Practical Nurse on the 2 North Regional Unit, MDH. 

“Some of our patients have limited visitors and little interest in eating. We wanted to make mealtimes a social experience to entice patients to eat by combining mealtime assistance with a volunteer visit and it has truly made such a difference.”