Expectations of the Ontario Healthcare System following the Implementation of Ontario Health Teams

Abstract

With the arrival of Ontario Health Teams (OHTs), healthcare providers, clinicians and patients seek to witness the efficacy of an integrated care model. OHTs are built on the concept of healthcare integration, coordinated care, shared fiscal and clinical accountabilities between multiple healthcare service providers, as well as bridging the gaps between the clinical, social and health promotional aspects of care delivery. This meta-narrative review seeks to examine, compare and determine the efficacy of the integrated care model using cross-sectional studies from around the world to see how integrated care effects health related outcomes. The efficacy of the model will be determined by evaluating the abilities of other integrated care models to reduce healthcare expenditures, improve coordination of care between healthcare service providers, bolster patient satisfaction and health outcomes, minimise emergency and life-threatening cases, lower emergency hospital admission rates as well as provide a comprehensive set of healthcare services including biomedical, mental and social supports. For future applications, this study could be used as a guideline to highlight areas of improvement in integrated care models, as well as to evaluate benefits of existing models and determine best approaches forward.