Digital platforms
Digital platforms and private healthcare
Aged care case study: “How can we better link hospital discharge to aged care services and residential aged care facilities?
Working with a real-life practical case example this executive lunchtime session will allow a strategic discussion on the application, benefits and considerations of introducing better digital platforms and connecting systems in the transition of people from hospital to aged care facilities (both private and not-for-profit).
Our special guests Matiu Bush Senior Strategist Business Innovation at Bolton Clarke and Professor Colleen Doyle Senior Principal Research Fellow at the National Ageing Research Institute are both focused on driving innovation and creativity in the aged and community care sector. They will pose a problem statement on understanding the current patient and family journey in a time of high stress, and explore how we can provide more timely information to support families at this time. In addition, there will be a service improvement focus on how we better enable more efficient and effective systems in hospital discharge connecting with residential aged care facilities and associated care providers.
The case study discussion will then form the basis of a design session supported by a Design Thinking facilitator to work through a structured discussion to identify some take away solutions and approaches to support ongoing business strategy and service implementation.
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Insights
Our key take-away as participants and observers at the event were:
- Acknowledged problem – there was general agreement across all participants that we can do
better. The current situation is complex, relatively poor coordination between providers, and a lack of information for patients, families and potential new residents. We should do more. It is not consumer focused. - Matching tool a specific requirement – all participant groups looked at ideas and solutions around matching pairs (right patient to right aged care facility). Matiu Bush indicated that there is an algorithm for matching children with schools and new doctors with best fit hospitals has lots of similarities which may be worth investigation and consideration.
- Empathy and understanding in transition of care – we need to consider empathy for the patient and family in transition into aged care. Often the patient and family are emotional and stressed, and often grieving in the situation of significant change for a loved one. We as health service providers need to ensure that we design and manage supporting systems and processes with the human element as a key ingredient.
Innovation guide
Matiu Bush founded One Good Street, a social networking platform to encourage neighbour initiated care for older residents at risk of social isolation and loneliness. Matiu is Senior Strategist Business Innovation at Bolton Clarke, driving innovation and creativity in the aged and community sector. Matiu has a Master’s degree in Public Health and broad clinical and managerial nursing experience, including working in Tijuana, Mexico with Nobel Prize Laureate Mother Teresa in international border aid, and as an emergency, oncology, intensive care nurse and is a sexual health Nurse Practitioner.
Matiu contributes to health system innovation through involvement with Better Care Victoria as a board member and the Emerging Leaders Clinical Advisory Committee. Matiu is a Rotarian and a member of the Health Informatics Society of Australia (HISA) and mentors the next generation of undergraduate and postgraduate science students through the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health Mentoring Program.
Innovation guide
Colleen Doyle is currently senior principal research fellow at the National Ageing Research Institute and a research consultant. She was Professor of Aged Care at the Australian Catholic University 2012-2017 in a health service research partnership with Villa Maria Catholic Homes. In 2018-19 she has provided contract research advice for the federal Office of the e-safety Commissioner and Nurse and Midwife Support. Her research focuses on the impact of befriending for older adults living in residential aged care, funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council, ways to improve dementia care and health service evaluation. She holds AHPRA registration as a non-practising psychologist and founded the Australian Psychological Society special interest group in psychology and ageing. Colleen has published extensively in academic and technical reports, including lead author for a book in 2018 on ‘Moving into residential care; a practical guide for older people and their families’.