TORONTO –Five Ontario hospitals have been recognized for the first time as "benchmark" hospitals in a report released today by Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman and Ontario Hospital Association President and CEO, Hilary Short.

Hospital Report 2005 : Rehabilitation says Penetanguishene General Hospital/North Simcoe Alliance, Providence Continuing Care (Kingston), St. John's Rehabilitation Hospital (Toronto), Trillium Health Centre (Mississauga), and West Park Healthcare Centre (Toronto) have performed above average in more than one area, based on 2003/04 data from hospitals.

"The McGuinty government, in partnership with the Ontario Hospital Association, is committed to the continuous improvement of patient care and reporting back regularly to Ontarians," Smitherman said. "The more we know about how hospitals are doing in providing services to patients, the more effectively hospitals can learn from one another and we can all work toward improving care."

Overall, patients were satisfied with the rehabilitation care they received but the report shows that improvement is needed in helping patients make the transition from hospital to community. The report covers adult patients who received rehabilitation services for a variety of conditions including stroke, hip fracture and total joint replacement.

Since 1998, Ontarians have had access to independently researched reports dealing with the performance of hospitals across the province. This is the first report with hospital-specific data on rehabilitation services, and the first one to identify benchmark hospitals.

The report on rehabilitation services looks at five areas : clinical utilization and outcomes (patient care), client perspectives (how patients feel about their care), system integration and change (dealing with change), financial performance and condition, as well as a women's health perspective.

"Participation in continuous quality improvement initiatives has always been a priority for Ontario's hospitals," said Short. "This report is just another example of how Ontario hospitals are continuing to demonstrate leadership in accountability, and gaining a better understanding of how rehabilitation services can be enhanced across the province."

Independently prepared by the Hospital Report Research Collaborative (based at the University of Toronto), Ontario's Hospital Reports are considered one of the most advanced approaches to reporting on hospital performance in North America.

"This Rehabilitation report will allow hospitals with designated beds to make comparisons and share experiences," said Drs. Cheryl Cott and Susan Jaglal, both from the Hospital Report Research Collaborative research team. "Although there are variations among hospitals and regions, overall results indicate that hospitals are providing quality rehabilitation care. Nonetheless, there are areas that require improvement such as the successful transition of clients from rehabilitation settings to the community."

In addition to this Rehabilitation report, the Hospital Report 2005 series will feature acute care, emergency department care and complex continuing care, and will be released later this year.

Hospital Report 2005 : Rehabilitation is available on the following websites : www.health.gov.on.ca, www.oha.com, and www.hospitalreport.ca or by calling 1-877-234-4343 or (TTY) 1-800-837-5559.

For further information :

Members of the general public : (416) 327-4327, or (800) 268-1154

Report Hospital Report 2005 : Rehabilitation

Backgrounder Hospital Report 2005 : Rehabilitation 3 pages | 41k | PDF format

To view PDF format files, you need to have Adobe Acrobat® Reader installed on your computer.    You can download this free software from the Adobe Web site.

© Queen's Printer for Ontario, 2005  |  Privacy Policy  |  Disclaimers  |   Last Modified :