The Provincial Government is establishing centres of excellence in aging at regional hospitals, which will lead to improved access to quality health care for seniors in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The Honourable Tom Osborne, Minister of Health and Community Services, made the announcement today during the latest Health Care Action update. Minister Osborne was joined by Dr. Pat Parfrey, Deputy Minister of Health Transformation, and Dr. Susan Mercer, Clinical Chief, Older Adult Care, NL Health Services.
The centres of excellence in aging will include:
- More than 90 beds as part of the new St. Clare’s Mercy Hospital for Acute Care of the Elderly Units (known as ACE Units), as well as rehabilitation and restorative care;
- Seniors-friendly services, such as special attention to medication, special assistance from medical staff and mobility aids; and,
- Seniors-friendly emergency care at the existing St. Clare’s Mercy Hospital, the new Western Memorial Regional Hospital and the new emergency department at the Health Sciences Centre.
Planning is continuing for a centre of excellence in Central Newfoundland and appropriate programming for Labrador.
Seniors-friendly emergency care will include services such as:
- Medical staff trained to provide emergency care specific to older adults; and
- Equipment designed to make emergency visits more comfortable, such as reclining exam chairs and mobility aides.
To support the centres of excellence in aging the Provincial Government is funding the creation of a new Geriatric Medicine Training Program, as well as the expansion of Memorial University’s Care of the Elderly Training Program for family physicians. Budget 2023 committed approximately $5 million over five years to create the new training program and expand the current training program.
The new training program will provide physicians with additional knowledge and skills needed to provide high-quality care to older adults, which will improve health care outcomes, improve quality of life and help enable seniors to maintain their independence, leading to improved access to quality care for seniors in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The new Geriatric Medicine Training Program, the expansion of the Care of the Elderly Family Physician Training and the creation of centres of excellence in aging align with recommendations from Health Accord NL to increase trained providers in older adult care in all areas of the health system, including family care teams, acute care, emergency departments, restorative care, assisted living and long-term care settings.
Quotes
“Older adults visit emergency departments at a higher rate than non-seniors, have high use of prescription medications, and often suffer from complex social and physical challenges. These new centres of excellence will exceed existing disability regulations and be environments offering more assistance to seniors. The new and expanded training programs will also support physicians to provide better care for all seniors and allow physicians to receive that training here, which helps with recruitment and retention of physicians.”
Honourable Tom Osborne
Minister of Health and Community Services
“At NL Health Services, we are committed to delivering the highest quality care to all residents of our province and are pleased with the announcements today that support enhanced health care delivery for the older adult population. With a shortage of geriatricians across the country, a Geriatric Training Program at the Faculty of Medicine will allow us to train these specialists here in the province. Together with the expansion of the Care of the Elderly Training Program and establishing centres of excellence for senior care, we will be better positioned to provide high quality care in both hospital and community-based settings for older adults with complex health issues.”
Dr. Susan Mercer
Clinical Chief, Older Adult Care, NL Health Services – Eastern Zones
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