Abstract
Background: Community Wellness Hubs (CWH) are an alliance of health, wellness, housing, and social services providers that coordinate and deliver services to seniors made vulnerable by social determinants of health. CWHs are located in or near community housing buildings and provide services to individuals that reside in the building and surrounding area.
This model was developed collaboratively by Burlington Ontario Health Team (BOHT) and Halton Community Housing Corporation (Ontario, Canada) as a strategy to coordinate the care and supports received by seniors. This innovative approach addresses many health system challenges including access, social isolation, and high utilization of costly health services such as acute care.
CWHs expanded from one building to ten and the interest continues to grow. Comprehensive evaluation of both operational and impact measures has proven the model’s potential to enhance the experience of care for members and providers, reduce burden on Ontario’s healthcare system, and transform the delivery of integrated care.
Through coordinated efforts with a professional firm specializing in social impact in public sector, BOHT has worked to capture a) the essence of the model in a standardized implementation guide and b) the model’s value in an impactful business case. These resources will be used to support the continued scale and spread of the CWH model to other regions and secure funding required to support sustainability over time. Examples like the CWH Standardized Implementation Guide, that outline the steps required to achieve coordination of care between health, wellness, social, and housing providers, are unique and needed now more than ever to transform the improvement of health outcomes and relieve pressure on the acute care system. This workshop gives participants an in-depth look at the model maturity journey and the opportunity to discuss its applicability to other jurisdictions and populations.
Audience: Integrated care leaders, implementers, evaluators, policymakers, and researchers.
Approach: Our workshop is designed for a 90-minute session.
1.Introduction and background (25 mins) – i. Share the background of the CWH model and its essential components and principles; ii. Review scale and spread progress to date within the Ontario context for older adult population; iii. Discuss dissemination and implementation strategies employed to date.
2.Objectives and small group set-up (5 mins) – Participants divide into 3 small groups based on priority populations:
- At-risk youth
- Rural seniors
- Newcomers
3.Small group discussion (40 mins) – Small groups will discuss the following questions through the lens of a priority population:
- Relevance and adaptability of the core and peripheral components of the model
- Important partnerships to support needs across the social determinants of health
- Potential barriers, facilitators and strategies for implementation
4.Share back (15 mins)
5.Closing (5 mins) – Takeaways are shared with participants for reflection and future use using a QR code.
Outcomes: The workshop will highlight that implementing and sustaining integrated care models requires adaptability, strategic scaling, evaluation and robust partnerships. Participants will gain insights into how the model could be adapted to meet the needs of other populations.