News Release
Niagara Health System introduces new program model of care for patients without family doctors
- Date of Issue: Wednesday, October 13, 2004
- Français
Niagara, ON - The Niagara Health System (NHS) introduced a new program model of care recently with the arrival of its first Hospitalist at the Welland Hospital Site to support so-called "orphaned" patients who do not have a family doctor or whose doctor does not look after hospitalized patients.
Hospitalists are doctors who devote the majority of their time to the care of inpatients and who are dedicated to improving the quality of inpatient care. Under the new program model, orphaned, or unassigned, patients will be assigned to the Hospitalist on admission to the Welland hospital. Some patients may also be transferred to the care of the Hospitalist during their stay when they no longer require the care of an internist.
The new Hospitalist, Dr. Claire Miller, began her new position on Monday, October 4, 2004, and is based at the Welland Hospital Site. She practised family medicine in Fonthill for three years prior to joining the NHS. Her practice was taken over by Dr. Hendrik Venter, a new family physician in Niagara. Dr. Miller, who grew up in Wainfleet, also lived in New Hampshire for four years, from 1997 to 2001, spending much of that time working in a hospital.
"This is a wonderful opportunity for me to focus on an area of patient care which I thoroughly enjoy and find extremely rewarding – working with patients, physicians and other health-care professionals in a hospital setting," said Dr. Miller. "I would like to thank all of the physicians who have done such a wonderful job of caring for our unassigned patients prior to my arrival. These family doctors have extremely busy practices of their own, and there just aren't enough family practitioners in Welland and surrounding areas who can care for their own patients as well as those admitted to hospital without a doctor."
The NHS hopes to hire additional Hospitalists for the Welland Hospital Site, as well as introduce the program to the St. Catharines General Site.
The Hospitalist program will not replace the need for family practitioners to care for their own patients while in hospital. It is estimated that as many as 40 per cent of residents in Welland and surrounding areas, for example, do not have a family doctor.
Among the benefits of the Hospitalist program – being adopted by many hospitals across the province -- are improved access to physician care in the hospital setting by patients and their families, continuity of care, enhanced use of resources and clinical strategies within the NHS, and potential partnerships with academic institutions. Plans are also under way to develop post-discharge clinics to provide follow-up for patients without a family physician.
"We're absolutely thrilled to have a family physician as skilled and as caring as Dr. Miller join the Niagara Health System as its first Hospitalist," said Dr. Bill Shragge, Chief of Staff with the NHS. "Our patients and health-care providers will see many benefits from this new program model of care, and the NHS is looking forward to building on this program in the near future to ensure all of our patients receive first-rate care while in hospital."