Today I explored the Patient Profiles that the Patient First Review used to tell different people's stories. According to the Patient First Review "The use of patient profiles is increasingly used as a way to help planners and service providers remember that 'customers' or 'patients' are real people, with real needs. The profiles help people see the situation through the eyes of a patient."
All eight of the patients profiled have complex health problems and therefore are frequently interacting with the health care system. But I noticed that not one of these profiles were in the health care system due to an unintentional injury. Unintentional Injuries are a huge piece of the Saskatchewan health care picture.
In July of 2008, the Ministry of Health released the Saskatchewan Comprehensive Injury Surveillance Report, 1995-2005. The report indicated that falls is the leading cause of hospitalized injuries in all but two age categories: 15-19 and 20-34. Of all falls hospitalizations, 55 per cent occur in the 65 plus age group. If that isn't enough of a challenge, consider how Statistics Canada predicts the 80 plus age group alone will grow by 43 per cent by 2011. And our province has the highest percentage of seniors in this country at 15.4 per cent (according to the 2006 census).
One Safe Saskatchewan study shows that a 10 per cent decrease in provincial seniors’ falls hospitalizations equates to 300 fewer hospital beds required every year in Saskatchewan acute care facilities. This amounts to a total of 2,100 bed-days available for other acute care needs. Furthermore, according to SmarkRisk (based on 1998 Saskatchewan data) our province spends over $56 million in direct costs on seniors' falls annually. A 10 per cent reduction in the number of seniors' falls hospitalizations would also result in minimum annual savings to our province of $6 million in direct costs alone.
I appreciate the fact that the Patient First Review is using patient profiles to tell different people's stories. But they've left two stories untold. Considering the statistics above, Safe Saskatchewan respectfully submits two additional profiles:
Profile 9: Don
Don, age 45, is a husband and father of three children aged nine to 13. He loves his family, but he failed them. Last week Don took a risk while working around the house. He just wasn't thinking and ended up badly injuring his back. He's in the hospital right now, surrounded by frightened family members. The children never knew dad could get hurt, while his wife knows they need a dual income to make ends meet. Don and his family are not sure when he will leave the hospital and after that, how long his recovery period will be. His one risk is going to cost Don's family more than he would have ever guessed. Don wishes he could turn back the clock.
Profile 10: Lorna
Lorna is 78 years old. While her main priority is ensuring her 86-year-old husband's health, when he is well, she enjoys visiting her friends in the nursing home and going out to play bridge. Lorna had a fall last spring. Lately, her legs have been aching at night and she feels unsteady on her feet during the day. She avoids going down the basement steps now, and doesn't partake in her daily walking ritual. Lorna won't admit to anyone that she's made these changes in her life because she's afraid of falling again. Lorna's quality of life is suffering right now.
These two stories will involve frequent interactions with our Saskatchewan health care system at some point and both are the result of predictable and preventable events. The system will continued to face challenges if we as a province continue down this path every year in Saskatchewan:
- 158,000 unintentional injuries;
- 9,800 unintentional injuries;
- 3,500 permanent disabilities;
- 330 deaths; and
- $1 Billion cost to the provincial economy.
Let's also not forget the thousands more family members and friends who feel the full impact of each injury. A truly patient-centred system must recognize these facts, include them in the review and can help by sharing this perspective.