By Melissa Londono

Oak Valley Health participated in the Accreditation Canada survey from September 26 to 29, 2022. In early November, it was announced that the organization was accredited with Exemplary Standing – the highest award possible.

“We are incredibly honoured to be placed among top-ranked hospitals in Canada achieving 100 per cent of the required organizational practices and 99.8 per cent compliance with over 2,300 internationally recognized standards,” says Jo-anne Marr, President & CEO. “This is a remarkable achievement for Oak Valley Health and a clear measure of the incredible work being done by our physicians, staff, and volunteers. This is a stronger result than the one we achieved four years ago despite all the challenges we have faced in navigating the ongoing pandemic. I know there is still more to do, but today it is a very proud day for Oak Valley Health and our people.”

Surveyors from Accreditation Canada arrived on site to assess the organization. “Everyone – from staff, physicians, and volunteers – were excited to showcase all of the amazing work they do each and every day for our patients and community,” says Michelle Samm, Director, Patient Experience, Quality & Patient Safety and Infection Prevention & Control.

Due to the pandemic, the organization had to come up with innovative ways to engage teams in order to prepare for the on-site survey. To encourage participation, the Quality and Patient Safety Department developed the educational game ROP-OPOLY. The game’s purpose was to educate teams about ROPs. ROP-OPOLY was used by teams at Oak Valley Health to learn about a different required organizational practices (ROPs) each week.

Departments across the organization were organized into teams and worked together to collect ROP information which they shared and discussed with staff, physicians, and volunteers to raise awareness of these essential practices for enhancing patient safety and minimizing risk.

ROP-OPOLY was introduced in two phases over the course of a year. During phase one, all teams travelled together across the ROP-OPOLY board and received the same ROP information each week. Teams had the ability to participate in additional activities such as, Plinko, team-based ROP word-searches, word scrambles and Chance Day Fridays which allowed them to collect Qcoins (points) and climb the leader board. In phase two, teams moved up the leader board based on the roll of the dice. This dictated the ROP information received by each team, as well as the quantity of Qcoins collected each week. The more Qcoins a team collected, the more chances they had to win prizes. A weekly leaderboard was published which fostered friendly competition amongst the teams and increased buy-in.

Team participation was tracked weekly, with an average of 92 per cent of teams participating each week. The success of ROP-OPOLY was further enhanced by the use of weekly ROP information to develop and promote ROP education days at the program and department level. Oak Valley Health tweets about ROP-OPOLY, highlighting team engagement and participation, has sparked interest from other health care organizations across Ontario.

Oak Valley Health was one of the first organizations to invite a patient surveyor to participate as part of the accreditation process. Oak Valley Health is committed to continuing its journey as a patient-led organization and evolving its approach from including patient feedback and engagement to embedding patient co-design, co-production, and co- evaluation at all levels of the organization.

“Receiving Exemplary Standing amid one of the most challenging periods in healthcare is a testament to the staff’s commitment to provide patients with safe, high-quality care,” says Michelle. “Congratulations to everyone at Oak Valley Health.”

To learn more about ROP-OPOLY, contact Samantha Salatino, Quality & Patient Safety Specialist –Accreditation Lead at ssalatino@oakvalleyhealth.ca.

Melissa Londono is a Senior Communications Specialist at Oak Valley Health.