29B. Enhancing Primary Healthcare Delivery in the Inner City through Interprofessional Team-based Care

Abstract

Focus Area: Sustainable Business ModelsThis session will describe the evolution of an integrative model of primary healthcare delivery within a hospital-based setting. Over the past decade, the Academic Family Health Team (AFHT) in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at St Michael's Hospital in Toronto has been in the business of transforming primary healthcare. The AFHT provides services to the inner-city community of Toronto through 5 clinical sites located conveniently in the downtown east core. Our model of care incorporates patient- and family-centered values; interprofessional collaboration; and accessible evidence-based care and research. Evaluation of our efforts has proved emancipating for both clinicians and patients—with the delivery of integrative healthcare services, improved coordination of care, enhanced patient outcomes and satisfaction, improved quality of work life for our health professional team, and patient/family empowerment in self-help strategies. This model of care was identified by the Council of the Federation Health Care Innovation Working Group as one of 4 innovative models of primary care delivery to be emulated in Canada. The session will describe our experiences in building our integrative healthcare team. Facilitators and barriers to the development of successful integrative models of primary care will be described. Specific strategies that have facilitated success in our experience also will be shared.