The Health Outcomes for Better Information and Care (HOBIC), formerly known as the Nursing and Health Outcomes Project (NHOP), is leading the way with the collection and analysis of information on staffing indicators and health outcome measures.

HOBIC is now part of the Ministry's Information Management Strategy (IM) which is creating the necessary supports and structures for a more efficient, effective and accountable health system. The ability to collect and produce more accurate and comprehensive information and make it available for decision-making is essential to the transformation of our health system. This information will help us understand the impact of nursing and other disciplines on a patient's health.

The project's new name reflects the broadened scope of this initiative.

HOBIC will implement province-wide, standardized collection of patient health outcomes, staffing and quality of worklife information reflecting a variety of disciplines including nursing. HOBIC will provide valid, reliable information that is patient-centred, evidence based, outcome-focused and comparable across all sectors.

This type of information will assist nurses and other health care professionals in the course of their daily work to plan care and evaluate its effectiveness. It will support decision-making about resource use and assist researchers to better understand the impact of nursing and other health disciplines on patient care and health outcomes.

The initiative will focus initially on acute care, long-term care, complex continuing care and community care (home care) and subsequently will include rehabilitation, primary health care, mental health, and public health. We are currently working on Phase Three of the initiative.