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Virtual Waiting Room at Urgent + Primary Care Centres: Improving Health Outcomes for Chemotherapy Patients Using Digital Remote Symptom Monitoring
Urgent and Primary Care Centres (UPCC) across Vancouver Coastal Health were previously experiencing increased capacity and congestion in their waiting rooms. Overcrowded waiting rooms further increased patient’s frustration and anxiety when visiting the UPCC. Since the implementation of a virtual waiting room, waiting room congestion has decreased and has significantly improved patient satisfaction and experience.
A virtual waiting room was implemented across Urgent and Primary Care Centres (UPCC) in Vancouver, Richmond and North Shore to manage their waiting room capacity by allowing clinically appropriate patients the flexibility to wait at an alternative location. Once the UPCC team is ready for the patient, they alert the patient via a solution called Waitwhile, which texts the patient instructing them to return to the UPCC.
Part 2
When Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy can accurately and promptly report their symptoms and the care team is optimized to respond, symptoms will be better managed leading to improved quality of life and decreased acute care visits and hospitalizations. Better management of side effects can also help to prevent treatment delays which will help to improve utilization of scarce chemotherapy chair spots. With this, Richmond Hospital’s cancer team at Vancouver Coastal Health saw an opportunity to improve patient care by creating a remote symptom monitoring (RSM) system in conjunction with reorganization of the nursing team responsibilities by creating a new symptom management role
The hospital’s full-service outpatient cancer care clinic went live with a RSM monitoring system named RESPONSe in January 2024. Multiple design cycles included incorporation of conditional logic, COSTARS oncology symptom specific questionnaires, automatic triaging flags, immediate self—management tips and links to educational resources. Over 30 patients have enrolled to date, and early results show high completion rates of the health check and doctor’s visit surveys which have resulted in a response to 19 severe and 34 moderate reported side-effects and 63 symptom management phone calls by a dedicated symptom management nurse.
Speakers
Simran Bhogal
Vancouver Coastal Health
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Simran Bhogal is a Clinical Planner for the Virtual Health team at Vancouver Coastal Health. With a clinical background as an X-Ray and MRI Technologist, Simran decided she wanted to develop a better understanding of the healthcare system’s processes and strove to make a greater difference. She completed her Master’s in Health Leadership and Policy in Clinical Education at The University of British Columbia and began her role in Virtual Health. Through this role, she has had the opportunity to work with clinical teams and implement virtual solutions into their workflows. Some examples of the work that Simran has been a part of are introducing a virtual interpreter, virtual waiting room, online booking platform and digital faxing across the health authority. With the adoption of virtual solutions, Simran has witnessed enhanced patient journeys and improved staff satisfaction. These outcomes have further ignited Simran’s passion for introducing virtual care into today’s healthcare system and she actively seeks out more opportunities to make health care accessible for all.
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Gregory Liew
Vancouver Coastal Health
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Gregory Liew is the Interim Regional Director for Virtual Health at Vancouver Coastal Health. He has over 10 years of experience in the health care industry across Canada, Europe and South East Asia spanning the non-profit, public and private sectors. As a Registered Nurse by training, he endeavours to utilize his knowledge and skillset to improve the health outcomes and user experiences of Canadians.
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Tamsin Morgana
Vancouver Coastal Health
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Tamsin Morgana has been a registered nurse (BSN) and employed by Vancouver Coastal Health for 20 years and is currently a virtual health leader. A keen interest in change management and quality improvements in healthcare led her to complete a Royal Roads Master of Leadership, health speciality in 2010. Through various leadership roles, Tamsin brings a strong understanding and experience in system navigation, change management, project management, QI, clinical team workflow, patient education strategies, and works collaboratively with privacy, risk, security, legal, communications, data management, donors, and vendors to advance and implement change initiatives. Tamsin has brought a diversity of projects from idea to implementation and her passion lies in supporting key stakeholders (clinicians and patients) in the process to ensure success towards better care.
