New funding for joint surgery clinic to decrease wait for region's patients

The provincial government announced additional wait time funding which will mean quicker, easier access to care for area patients requiring joint replacement surgery.

Premier Dalton McGuinty announced Royal Victoria Hospital will receive $1.1 million to increase MRI and CT hours, and establish the new North Simcoe Total Joint Disease Management Clinic.

This innovative intake clinic will allow area hospitals and Community Care Access Centres to work together to provide a singlepoint of entry and referral to the first available surgeon in the region. This exciting initiative will balance the wait time for joint patients, standardize pre-surgery preparations, and coordinate and strengthen post-procedure care.

"We're thrilled with this announcement," says Gabby Coe, RVH senior operations director. "This collaborative approach will get patients in to see orthopedic surgeons more quickly, and ensure seamless care as close to home as possible for people across this region."

Services that are currently offered in a variety of different venues, such as surgeon's offices, hospital preadmission clinics, physiotherapy, and outpatient clinics, will be combined to provide a seamless continuum of care for patients. Rather than family physicians referring patients to a specific surgeon, patients will be assessed at the Total Joint Disease Management Clinic to determine if surgery is required; initial education and counseling will be provided; and alternate follow up and treatment strategies will be coordinated. Patients will be triaged according to urgency and surgery scheduled accordingly. This strategy will ensure that patients not requiring surgical intervention won't have to wait extensive periods of time to see a surgeon, only to be directed on to a different course of treatment. "What it means is onestop

shopping for patients who may need hip or knee replacement," says Dr. Gord Crawford, RVH orthopedic surgeon. "At the management clinic patients will have access to all the services they need in order to assess the degree of their disability. Once it has been determined that they indeed would be a good candidate for a hip or knee replacement, patients can then access the shortest wait time instead of booking with a surgeon who may have a year long waiting list. We have been trialing this clinic here at RVH for the past three months with great results. It's just good patient care."

Seven orthopedic surgeons performed 880 procedures at Royal Victoria Hospital in 2005/6. While wait time funding has significantly reduced the wait for those hip and knee surgeries, the wait time varied greatly depending on where the patient lived, and the surgeon who was caring for them.

The intake clinic is a joint submission from all the hospitals in the North Simcoe Muskoka LHIN and the service will be offered at, not just Royal Victoria Hospital, but in Collingwood and Orillia as well.