New transitional care option available to eligible patients awaiting long-term care in hospital, thanks to temporary local partnership
Acute care hospitals like Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH) are designed for people with urgent or acute health care needs.
In recent years, however, acute care hospitals have become a fallback and less-than-ideal ‘home’ for those awaiting an alternate level of care—in most cases, a long-term care bed—as the need for these spaces has exceeded the current system’s capacity.
Additional long-term care beds have recently been announced for Northumberland County. This is welcome news, but new construction takes time and the reality is that these new beds will not be built and operational for several years.
Currently at NHH 25 to 30 per cent of available acute care beds are actually occupied by alternate level of care (ALC) patients who do not, in fact, require acute care service. In other words, only 75 per cent of the intended acute care bed capacity at NHH is technically accessible to acute care patients.
This situation has resulted in lengthening wait times for those entering hospital through the Emergency Department (ED), an increase in patients who must be admitted to a bed in a crowded and noisy ED, and mounting frustration for patients, their loved ones and the health professionals who care for them.
A new transitional care option was recently introduced, thanks to a temporary partnership between NHH and the retirement home arm of Extendicare Cobourg, The Landmark Seniors’ Residence. While longer-term solutions to provincial ALC pressures are developed, this is a release valve with immediate, tangible benefits for the patients, their families and the local health system.
Through the partnership, up to four ALC patients at NHH now have the option of being transferred to a temporary home at The Landmark.
In so doing, four acute care beds at NHH will be freed up for patients who need urgent, acute care, while, at the same time, the quality of life for the eligible patients will be improved by offering a more home-like environment in which to wait for a more permanent long-term care placement, and other supports beneficial to their overall health and independence, including daily programming to support social and emotional well-being.
Patients eligible for the beds at The Landmark will have placement for long-term care papers completed and assessed as appropriate. A repatriation agreement is in place to support transfer back to the hospital should a patient’s needs change or the program funding is not sustained. At present, funding has been granted through the Central East Local Health Integration Network until March 31, 2019, with the potential that this will continue—and possibly expand to other area partners—until additional long-term care capacity is introduced.
The new option brings no additional cost to the participating patients. Patients would be expected to pay a daily fee to The Landmark equal to the current ‘co-payment’ they are required to pay in the hospital as an alternate level of care patient awaiting transfer to long-term care.
Eligibility for patients to be transferred to The Landmark is based on a range of clinical factors. A matching process is in place, to identify the most appropriate ALC patients for the program and to bring it to their attention for consideration. Ultimately, the decision of whether or not to temporarily transfer to The Landmark is up to the eligible patient and their loved ones.