The Road to Improving Access to Surgical Specialist Consultations: Ontario's Experience with Wait 1 Wait Time Data

Claudia Zanchetta; Jonathan C Irish; James P Waddell

doi:10.12927/hcq.2018.25701

The Road to Improving Access to Surgical Specialist Consultations: Ontario's Experience with Wait 1 Wait Time Data

Healthc Q. 2018 Oct;21(3):42-50. doi: 10.12927/hcq.2018.25701.

Authors

Claudia Zanchetta¹, Jonathan C Irish², James P Waddell³

Affiliations

¹ Has been with ATC on the forefront of healthcare IM/IT transformation for ten years. She is the clinical group manager for the Surgery Information Program at Access to Care, Cancer Care Ontario. Her unique combination of clinical experience and expertise in stakeholder engagement has enabled her to lead successful, complex provincial system projects. Claudia brings over 20 years of clinical and leadership experience as a staff nurse and nurse practitioner in a range of settings, including critical care, mental health, neurosurgery and trauma.
² The provincial head of Surgical Oncology at Cancer Care Ontario and the Kevin and Sandra Sullivan Chair in Surgical Oncology at the University of Toronto. He is a professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and an active head and neck surgical oncologist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre.
³ Was born and educated in Alberta but moved to Ontario for his postgraduate training in orthopedic surgery at the University of Toronto. He has occupied a number of positions at St. Michael's Hospital, including surgeon-in-chief and medical director of the Trauma Program, and completed 10 years as professor and chairman, Division of Orthopaedic Surgery at University of Toronto. In 2006, Dr. Waddell became the provincial lead for orthopaedic surgery for Access to Care and is responsible for the Orthopaedic Surgery Wait Times portfolio.

PMID: 30741155
DOI: 10.12927/hcq.2018.25701

Abstract

In 2009, the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care engaged Cancer Care Ontario to expand the Wait Time Information System to capture surgical consultation data (Wait 1). Over the years, an increasing number of patient and provider reports have shown that Wait 1 wait times account for a significant portion of the total wait time for surgery. With data published online by the ministry in late summer 2017, patients were given access to consultation wait time information for over 200 types of procedures at 92 surgical facilities in Ontario. This article explains how a highly focused data strategy, strong stakeholder and clinical expert support and a comprehensive communications strategy were critical to driving change for a large-scale provincial initiative, which is helping to drive better access for patients and improve transparency and accountability.

MeSH terms

Adult
Appointments and Schedules*
General Surgery / organization & administration
General Surgery / statistics & numerical data
Health Services Accessibility
Humans
National Health Programs / organization & administration
Ontario
Referral and Consultation / organization & administration
Referral and Consultation / statistics & numerical data*
Surgeons / statistics & numerical data*