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Improve Health Outcomes for Those in Rural and Remote Areas

On-going

Way Forward Commitment:

Providing services to an aging population in small, rural – and sometimes remote – communities increases costs and affects health outcomes. To improve outcomes, in 2018-19 our government will expand the use of the Health at Home program, which uses remote patient monitoring technology, to 1,200 more people. For the first time, this program will be offered across the province. Health at Home reduces the need for travel by allowing patients and their families to remain in their homes to check, record and transmit their personal health indicators such as blood pressure, oxygen or blood sugar levels. This can reduce visits to health care facilities and the need for costly acute care services.

In 2018-19, our government will also improve the delivery of health care services by collaborating with the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information to develop e-ordering processes for diagnostic imaging procedures. We will work to expand telehealth services into new settings, such as the homes of patients and long-term care facilities. This means patients will be able to see health care providers from the comfort of their own homes, when appropriate.

What We’ve Accomplished:

  • Currently 2,071 patients across the province are enrolled in Remote Patient Monitoring, with 1,090 new patients enrolled since March 2018.
  • The Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information (NLCHI),  in partnership with Eastern Health and Memorial University, is leading an e-ordering project funded by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) which will improve the effective and efficient utilization of the provincial healthcare system, and contribute to safe and quality patient care.
  • MyCCath, a web-based referral system for cardiac catheterization services, has been implemented in the Cardiac Catheterization Lab at the Health Sciences Centre and deployed provincially. Work also continues on an e-ordering solution in HEALTHe NL, the provincial electronic health record, for diagnostic services available through the Vascular Lab at St. Clare’s Mercy Hospital. The solution has been developed and is currently being tested with provincial deployment targeted for early fall 2019.
  • In May 2018, ACOA awarded the NLCHI with $9 million to support three new initiatives to improve clinical care and healthcare outcomes, one of which includes enhancements to the current Telehealth system. To date, enhanced infrastructure is in place, including a secure network to allow virtual scheduling of at-home Telehealth appointments between providers and patients. Telehealth system enhancements are currently being tested by the Regional Health Authorities. It is anticipated that both the pilot Telehealth testing in provider offices and patient homes will be concluded by March 31, 2019.
  • Testing of Telehealth system enhancements has been completed by the Regional Health Authorities, and testing continues in private practice clinics. Testing to connect Telehealth into a patient’s home is also underway.