Health Quality Ontario released Quality in Primary Care: Setting a foundation for monitoring and reporting in Ontario today. The report provides a snapshot of how the province is performing in access to primary care providers, provision of specific primary care services, and coordination with other sectors of the health system. Results show that Ontarians are less likely to receive optimal primary care if they live in a low-income neighbourhood, a rural, remote or northern area or if they are immigrants. This report is the first of a new series of public reports from HQO focused on monitoring the quality of primary care in Ontario using their new primary care performance measures. Data from these indicators will be updated regularly on HQO’s website and in future reports.

Data to Decisions (D2D) is shaping how primary care is measured

Data to Decisions (D2D) has shaped the implementation of HQO’s Primary Care Performance Measurement Framework, on which this report was developed. AFHTO members are leading the way in prioritizing these measures and shaping them to be manageable and meaningful to primary care providers.  To see how AFHTO members’ results compare to HQO’s previous Measuring Up report, see the D2D 2.0 overall results.

Support for your team

HQO is offering:

• Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) training webinars – Nov. 16, Dec. 3 & Dec. 10
• QIP Navigator
• Primary Care Practice Reports

Through AFHTO:

• D2D 3.0 planning and preparation
• Standard EMR queries
• Quality Improvement Decision Support Program

Key findings from HQO’s report:

• 94% - percentage of Ontarians aged 16 or older who say they have a primary care provider
• 86% - percentage of immigrants living in Canada for less than 10 years with a primary care provider they see regularly compared to 94% of Ontarians born in Canada.
• 50% - percentage of people aged 50 to 74 living in the lowest-income urban neighbourhoods are overdue for colorectal cancer screening, compared to 35% in the highest-income neighbourhoods.
• 44% - percentage of people with access to same-day or next-day appointments with their primary care provider when they are ill.
• 35% - percentage of people in rural areas who are able to see their primary care provider on the same or next day when sick, compared to 46% in urban settings.
• Patient stories in the report include that of Brian, a FHT patient on page 12.

Media coverage of the report:

• “Who you are, where you live matter when it comes to getting the best primary care, Health Quality Ontario report shows”, HQO news release, Nov. 10, 2015
• “Ontario patients lack immediate access to family doctors when sick: report”, The Globe and Mail, Nov. 10, 2015
• “Too many Ontarians overdue for colon cancer screening: report”, Toronto Star, Nov. 10, 2015