May is Community Living Month
Many Community Living associations are enthusiastically organizing activities to mark the month of May, celebrated as Community Living Month across Ontario. The month is a time when Ontarians celebrate the accomplishments of people who have an intellectual disability and recognize the work of individuals, families and partners dedicated to building an inclusive community.
“We are definitely looking forward to May, and not only for improved weather but also for Community Living Month,” says Jo-Anne Demick, Executive Director of Community Living Parry Sound. “The theme of this year’s activities is employment since we are also celebrating the launch of the Ready, Willing and Able national initiative.”
• Symbolic of the act of raising awareness, there will be a Community Living flag raising by Parry Sound Mayor Jamie McGarvey on May 7.
• Breakfast with the Mayor, a town favourite, will take place at Wellington’s Pub & Grill on May 14. This year, it will feature guest speaker Michael Bach from the Canadian Association for Community Living.
• Next will be the Festival of the Sound community fund-raiser on May 18 at the Bobby Orr Community Centre.
• The rest of the events will include the annual golf tournament fund-raiser on May 22 at the Rocky Crest Golf Club, and an open house with Community Living Parry Sound’s autism services partner on May 24 to promote the association’s children’s services.
These events bring much goodwill to communities. They offer both a pleasant way to spend a day and an opportunity to raise awareness about issues of inclusion.
By gathering in public places and engaging in sincere interactions with one another, community members not only illustrate an exemplary inclusive community, but also show how natural such a community is, and how easily it can be achieved.
For more information visit www.clps.ca
Help stop stigma
The Canadian Mental Health Association introduced Mental Health Week (MHW) in 1951 to raise awareness of mental illness. MHW today offers people practical ways to maintain and improve their mental health and support their recovery from mental illness. It also provides an opportunity for all Canadians to reflect on our attitudes and behaviours
toward people living with mental health issues because we all need to work to reduce the discrimination and stigma associated with mental health problems.
This year, the CMHA is launching its Be Mind Full initiative. They are asking Canadians to tell them how they really feel. Are you fine or phine? Too often people claim to be feeling fine when they do not. The result: approximately seven million Canadians — 20 percent of the population — live with mental illness.
Many do not seek treatment because of the stigma and discrimination associated with mental health problems.
Information from www.cmha.ca
We’re a ‘high performer’
Positive responses from satisfied patients have helped us reach ‘high performer’ status among our provincial peer group hospitals.
A report released last week by National Research Corporation Canada (NRCC) recognizes WPSHC as a community hospital ‘high performer’ in the 90th percentile for in-patient overall care and services. NRCC is an independent research company that conducts our Patient Experience Survey and performs response analysis. The report ‘Patient Ratings of Overall Care and Likelihood to Recommend Ontario Hospitals’ includes data from patients cared for between April 1, 2012 and March 31, 2013. The information released last week highlights and identifies hospitals in Ontario that have achieved performance in the 90th to 99th percentile groups for the questions: ‘Overall, how would you rate the care you received at the hospital?’ and ‘Would you recommend this hospital to your family or friends?’
WPSHC is among five other community hospitals recognized for excellence in the ‘overall’ question. “We’re proud of this significant accomplishment. It is very rewarding to know that our patients have responded so positively to an independent and external survey where they can anonymously tell us ‘what they really think’ about the in-patient care they have received,” said Chief Nursing Officer and Director of Patient and Family Centred Care Anne Litkowich. “Their responses confirm that we are meeting most patient’s expectations by delivering excellent and compassionate care.”
The survey results serve as important performance indicators and are used to inform our Quality Improvement Plan, to help identify and motivate positive change, and support patient engagement.
“This recognition in the ‘overall’ question speaks to quality and satisfaction with the entire in-patient experience. Staff from many departments, and our physicians, contribute to this accomplishment,” said CEO Donald Sanderson.
“I thank you all for what you do in service to the community we are privileged to care for.”
Achieving Excellence - Celebrating dedication to health care in our community
WPSHC’s annual Long Service Awards Ceremony was held at the Bobby Orr Community Centre on 14 December 2013.
Award recipients who attended were photographed for our annual Achieving Excellence newsletter.
A ceremony for 5-year award recipients was held at WPSHC on 18 December 2013.
Read more in this special edition newsletter - Achieving Excellence.