Renfrew Victoria Hospital installs state-of-the-art CT scanner
RVH’s digital imaging department has taken a giant leap forward with the installation of a new GE 128-slice Revolution – EVO scanner on Friday, January 20.
“This is really significant for our hospital. For our patients and for our staff it is further evidence that we are making a significant investment to ensure that we have state-of-the-art equipment,” commented Randy Penney, RVH President and CEO.
As computed tomography (CT) technology continues to advance and perform more efficiently and effectively, it is important to offer the newest generation of scanner to RVH patients.
“The Revolution Evo will increase image clarity and improve image quality, as well as decrease image artefact and noise,” noted Phil Crozier, RVH Diagnostic lmaging Lead”
Another advantage of the new CT scanner is dose reduction software that will allow patients to be scanned at a lower dose.
“The new CT scanner will provide outstanding quality images while exposing our patients to less radiation. This is part of an RVH commitment to improved patient safety—the new scanner will allow physicians to follow newly published screening guidelines recommended by the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care and Cancer Care Ontario,” stated Dr. Steve Radke, RVH Chief of Staff.
An added benefit of the enhanced CT technology is that it will allow RVH to participate, in partnership with The Ottawa Hospital (TOH) and Cornwall Community Hospital, as the Ottawa Valley site for a new, three-year High Risk Lung Cancer Screening Pilot (HRLCS) project.
Sponsored by Cancer Care Ontario (CCO), the project is aimed at screening people who are smokers and at higher risk of developing lung cancer with the goal of detecting these cancers as early as possible.
“This project participation is another advantage of having the new CT scanner and our collaboration with TOH for reporting of our Medical imaging,” noted Crozier, adding that TOH is in the process of installing the same CT equipment.
RVH staff began application training on Monday, January 23, and the new scanner was expected to be fully operational on Thursday, January 26.
“The updated 128-slice CT scanner positions RVH as a leader in our region. It allows us to share images with other organizations, increases our diagnostic capabilities and enhances the care we provide to our patients in Renfrew and the surrounding area,” said Julia Boudreau, RVH VP of Corporate Services.
The purchase of the new CT scanner is being funded by the RVH Foundation’s fundraising efforts.
“The Foundation is so grateful for the support it receives” says Barb Desilets, ED RVHF “and this is an example of the difference donor dollars make. It was evident during the initial CT campaign in 2009 that our community saw the value of this service. Because of ongoing gifts, we can now support the upgrade to ensure the continuation of quality service close to home.
High Achievement for Mammo Testing at RVH
Renfrew Victoria Hospital has once again been recognized with a three-year term of accreditation in mammography by the Canadian Association of Radiologists (CAR).
“As with so many of our programs at RVH, we strive for excellence in patient care—accreditation is an essential part of providing the very best patient care possible,” comments Phil Crozier, head of the RVH diagnostic imaging department.
Obtaining accreditation status is an intense process involving strict quality control standards and a thorough evaluation process. The team is required to monitor daily equipment performance, perform thorough weekly machine testing and submit a selection of case studies and testing results.
“Accreditation is most important for our patients because it means that we have the absolute best equipment, the best physician credentials and that everything in the mammography suite is always kept up to date,” explains RVH Mammographer Debbie Tierney.
The Mammography Accreditation Program was instituted more than 20 years ago to ensure the quality of mammography images meets the highest standards.
RVH has provided fully accredited mammography services since 1995 and is an Ontario Breast Screeening Program (OBSP) site.
Mammograms involve a low-dose x-ray of breast tissue to detect and evaluate breast changes. The exam is performed to aid in the early detection and diagnosis of breast diseases. RVH began offering fully digitized mammography examinations in 2011.
RVH President and CEO Randy Penney congratulates the team for their continued commitment to the program: “Being awarded with accreditation in mammography is a major achievement for our department, hospital and, most importantly, for our patients who utilize our services.”
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Cookies kick start conversation about Advance Care Planning
Renfrew Victoria Hospital championed National Advance Care Planning Day on Friday, April 15, by handing out ‘care planning cookies’ to inpatients, visitors and staff.
Inside each fortune-style cookie was one of 17 questions intended to stimulate discussion about living and dying well, and what a person’s wishes would be. For example, they might ask “The things that give my life purpose are…” or “Three things people caring for me need to know about me when I am dying…”
“The cookies are an ice breaker,” says Ann Marie Urbaitis, RVH Palliative Care Program, “because it’s difficult to have these conversations.”
Advance Care Planning (ACP) is all about making decisions now, appointing a substitute decision maker and letting that person know what you would want, so that your health care preferences will be carried out in the future, even if you can’t speak for yourself.
Urbaitis adds that it is much more difficult to make decisions at the time of an illness or critical incident when stress tends to run very high.
“How would your spouse or substitute decision maker know what you want if you don’t talk about it?” Urbaitis asks.
The RVH Ethics Committee and volunteers were on hand to help distribute the cookies and resource materials provided by the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association’s Speak Up campaign.
“We’re always trying to connect our ethics committee with staff and the community, so this day was also a way for them to meet in person and an opportunity to promote the work of our ethics committee,” notes Chris Ferguson, RVH Vice President of Patient Care Services.
“This entire day has been a great exercise to bring awareness to everyone in the hospital and initiate some thoughtful conversation about a difficult, but very important topic,” adds Ferguson. “We’re very grateful to the Ethics Committee members and volunteers who helped out.”
Answers to the cookie questions were collected and the results will be posted around RVH to keep the conversation going. “This is very needed because these conversations aren’t happening now,” concludes DeeDee Lepine, palliative care volunteer.
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Press Release
January 27, 2016
Renfrew Victoria Hospital and Bell Canada are pleased to announce the release of a new Mental Health Application for mobile devices on “Bell Lets Talk Day” ‐ January 27, 2016.
The idea of providing increased knowledge of mental health issues to paramedics and first responders was initiated by Dr. Lori Gray, a clinical psychologist working with the Toronto Paramedic Service. In her work she realized that a gap existed in the current paramedic training educational curriculum and the increasing number of mental health issues paramedics were responding to.
With a generous grant from Bell Canada “Let’s Talk” the creation of a mobile APP to support front line emergency personnel was initiated.
This mental health APP was created and developed by Premergency Inc, in collaboration with the health care staff at Renfrew Victoria Emergency department and the Renfrew County Paramedic Service.
This Mental Health App will serve to support and provide first responders with quick, easily accessible mental health information/resources on mobile devices. Accessible information will include: Approach and Assessment to the Mentally Ill Patient; The Ontario Mental Health Act as it pertains to first responders; Common Mental Illnesses; Medications associated with Mental Health Illness; Mental Health Social Support Services that are available in Renfrew county.
Quote From Chief Michael Nolan of the County of Renfrew Paramedic Service
“As Paramedics are on the front lines of health care in Canada, we respond to support people in crisis everyday. The information available in this the Mental Health APP will provide just in time, critical information to Paramedics while supporting individuals and families experiencing mental health challenges. Ensuring that Paramedics have access to these evidence based decision support tools and techniques will ensure consistent diagnosis, support and treatment for people in the care of Paramedics experiencing a mental health crisis.” – Chief Michael Nolan County of Renfrew Paramedic Service
Quote From CEO Randy Penney of Renfrew Victoria Hospital
“For our staff and our physicians we are excited to be part of this project. More importantly for our patients and their families it will mean our clinicians will have improved access to information to enhance the care we can provide.” – Randy Penney CEO Renfrew Victoria Hospital
Quote From President Dean DiMonte of Premergency Inc.
“We are exceptionally pleased to have created this mobile app technology for the Bell Lets Talk project. It’s imperative that mental health is acknowledged and understood, and we are proud to have a hand in aiding our first responders with this app.” – Dean DiMonte President Premergency Inc.
The new application is set to be released on Bell Let’s Talk Day, January 27. It will be available on Google Play, as well as the Apple App Store (following approval period). For more information, contact Dean DiMonte, President of Premergency Inc.
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Improved access to world-class UOHI cardiologists for RVH patients
February 2, 2016
Enhanced services for patients are at the root of a new partnership between Renfrew Victoria Hospital and the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI). Now, echocardiograms completed at RVH will be read by cardiac specialists at the Heart Institute.
“This initiative allows for the real-time transfer of orders, images and reports between RVH, UOHI and The Ottawa Hospital and facilitates the interpretation and reporting of echo studies performed at RVH by cardiologists at UOHI,” stated Dr. Thierry Mesana, President and CEO, University of Ottawa Heart Institute.
The Xcelera echocardiogram imaging and reporting system went live with the first patient on January 21. The project team reported that the technology worked seamlessly, thanks to the hard work of staff at RVH, UOHI and The Ottawa Hospital (TOH).
Echocardiograms are a pain-free test using sound waves that help to identify heart disease—the new integrated system allows for more efficient service.
As Julia Boudreau, RVH VP of Corporate Services, explains, the collaboration will decrease wait times for tests, reduce the need for retests as results will be readily available to physicians at both RVH and UOHI, and improve continuity of care. She expressed her appreciation to everyone involved from all three organizations: “My sincere appreciation goes out to everybody who worked on this project.”
“This partnership is another example of how important integration of services is to bring high-quality patient care closer to home, and how we can continually work together to improve patient services,” added Phil Crozier, RVH Diagnostic Imaging, referring to the earlier integration of radiology imaging services with The Ottawa Hospital.
Dr. Rob Beanlands, Chief of Cardiology at UOHI and Dr. Steve Radke, RVH Chief of Staff, agree that this is an exciting partnership. It will increase RVH’s capacity to perform echos and ensure that tests at both institutions adhere to the same standards.
“The RVH echo lab will be held to the same accreditation standards as UOHI ensuring ongoing quality assurance,” stated Dr. Radke.
“Our hospital has had a wonderful working relationship with UOHI and TOH over the years,” said Randy Penney, RVH President and CEO. “This new agreement will take us to a completely new level. For our patients, it will mean improved access to the cardiac specialists at UOHI.”
Penney concluded, “A lot of teamwork went into making this project a success. Congratulations to everyone involved.”
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For more information please contact:
Randy Penney, President and CEO, Renfrew Victoria Hospital, 613-432-4851, ext. 260
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November 27, 2015
Local Hospitals Recognized for Outstanding Leadership in Cardiovascular Care
OTTAWA, November 27, 2015 – Developed and powered by the Ottawa Heart Institute, the Get with the Guidelines initiative seeks to develop a regionalized approach for secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and according to evidence-based practice guidelines in patients admitted to hospitals across the region.
Today, the Heart Institute is proud to announce the successful implementation of best practices in the treatment of Heart Failure and Acute Coronary Syndrome, and in Smoking Cessation by the Pembroke Regional Hospitaland the Renfrew Victoria Hospital. Both hospitals are being recognized for their leadership in providing all the essential medical, administrative, and health records support as well as submitting all data to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) in order to capture vital information and share their learning.
Through this program, the Heart Institute supports regional hospitals by:
- providing the required educational material and support to physicians and hospital staff, including health records;
- providing a comprehensive implementation toolkit;
- providing website access to site team members which includes a scorecard of partners progress;
- monitoring tool usage; and ensuring that the tools are properly completed;
- using the CIHI discharge abstract database to identify quality assurance issues locally and regionally and a quality improvement plan developed with each hospital to ensure regional 2 and 5 year targets are reached.
“Over this entire process, both Pembroke Regional Hospital and Renfrew Victoria Hospital have shown tremendous leadership and commitment in ensuring the implementation of a solid approach that will empower patients to be more involved with the care they receive,” said Dr. Thierry Mesana, President and CEO of the Heart Institute.
Pembroke Regional Hospital President and CEO Pierre Noel said efforts to reduce readmission rates have long been a priority and being part of this initiative has resulted in positive outcomes which ultimately benefit the patients.
“Significant effort has been put forward to ensure our patients are going home with the correct information, the right education, and helpful information to share with their care providers. Having this tool available which standardizes the care and instruction being given at a patient’s time of discharge is making a big difference in their health outcomes once they are back at home,” Mr. Noel said.
“On behalf of patients, staff and physicians of the Renfrew Victoria Hospital, I would like to thank the Ottawa Heart Institute for the services they continue to offer to our catchment area and the entire region. For our cardiac patients, we are well served by the clinicians of the Ottawa Heart Institute,” said Randy Penney, RVH CEO and President.
The University of Ottawa Heart Institute is the only independent provider of specialized cardiovascular care for the Champlain Local Health Integration Network, home to over 1.2 million people, and serves more than 40 referral hospitals throughout the province.
Media Contacts
Vincent Lamontagne Director, Corporate Communications
University of Ottawa Heart Institute
613-899-6760
vlamontagne@ottawaheart.ca
Carolyn Levesque Public Affairs and Communications Coordinator
Pembroke Regional Hospital
(613) 732-3675, ext. 6165
carolyn.levesque@pemreghos.org
Heather Coughlin | Pappin Communications
Renfrew Victoria Hospital
(613) 735-0952
heather@pappin.com
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Here at the RVH Foundation we’re committed to posting as much as we can about our local hospital and the services we administer. The RVH sleep lab provides both products and services to help ensure you’re getting the best sleep. As the old saying goes, just sleep on it! Our RVH sleep specialists are here to tell you just how important proper sleep is to your overall health and well-being.
Sleep apnea is a huge problem that often goes untreated. Many people believe that sleep apnea is a condition that only affects the overweight and elderly, but that’s just not the case. In fact, did you know that many healthy teens suffer with undiagnosed sleep apnea, which affects their brain development? Did you also know that people taking one medication for high blood pressure have a 60% chance of having sleep apnea, and if you are taking three or more medications you have an 80% chance of having sleep apnea?
What is sleep apnea?
Sleep apnea is a potentially serious disorder in which breathing starts and stops repeatedly. There are two different types of sleep apnea; Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common form that occurs when throat muscles relax, and Central sleep apnea, which occurs when your brain doesn’t send proper signals to muscles that control breathing. This can be noticed by listening to breathing patterns during sleep.
What are the risk factors of sleep apnea?
It is important to understand that sleep apnea can affect everyone and anyone, even children and teens. These are a few factors that can increase your likelihood of developing sleep apnea.
- Excess weight – Fat deposits around your neck can obstruct your airways and breathing. However, not everyone who develops sleep apnea is overweight.
- Neck circumference – Some people have inherited naturally narrow airways, or your tonsils may be swollen, blocking your airways.
- Being male – Men are twice as likely to develop sleep apnea.
- Being a senior – individuals 60 and over have a higher likelihood of developing sleep apnea.
- Smoking – Smokers are three times more likely to have sleep apnea over those who have never smoked.
- Use of alcohol and sedatives – Substances can often relax the muscles in your throat, obstructing your breathing patterns and airways.
Long-term effects if not treated:
Our RVH sleep team is passionate about educating RVH patients and the community on the importance of a good night’s sleep. Many people do not seek the proper treatment to deal with their sleep apnea, which can cause long-term effects. If not treated sleep apnea can cause:
- High blood pressure and heart problems – Your heart needs oxygen, and sudden drops in oxygen levels during sleep put tremendous stress on your heart. This also increases your risk of stroke and heart attack.
- Daytime fatigue – The repetitive wakening during sleep makes normal, restorative sleep impossible for those suffering with sleep apnea. You may have difficulty staying awake and concentrating and be irritable and depressed. Children and teens who suffer from sleep apnea often do poorly in school and can possess behavioral problems.
- Complications with surgeries and medical procedures – People who suffer from sleep apnea have a higher risk of complications following major surgery, as they’re prone to breathing problems, especially when sedated and lying on their backs. Before you have surgery, tell your doctor that you have sleep apnea and how it’s treated.
- Liver problems – We know it seems a little random, but sleep apnea sufferers are more likely to have abnormal liver results that show scarring and damage.
The Renfrew Victoria Hospital supplies a wide variety of sleeping products for sale. Our staff can properly assess, and treat your sleeping condition to enhance your quality of life and help you have a more restful night.
For the month of June, all CPAP accessories and miscellaneous sleep products will be on sale for 15% off. The RVH Sleep Product Store is located in the 500 building, directly across from the main hospital.
100% of monies from the store are funneled right back into our community hospital.
If you or someone you know would like to book an appointment or gain more information, please contact our sleep experts at 613-432-8259.
Renfrew Victoria Hospital Foundation 