Financial
Performance
IWK Annual Report 2017/2018
Leadership Message
The past year has been one of challenge and change at the IWK Health Centre, but also one of resiliency, accomplishment and celebration. Our 2017-18 annual report, Better Together, is a recognition of our employees, physicians, volunteers and partners who always put patient care and experiences at the centre of everything they do.
Working together with these vital stakeholders, we will lead the way in building a better future for those we serve. With the support of our patients and families, we have continued to focus on ways to integrate our clinical research expertise with patient care at the bedside to achieve better health outcomes that we all know are possible.
From engaging our patient partners in co-designing care and care spaces, to seeking their advice on quality improvement projects, we have committed to view our services and redevelopment projects through the eyes of patients and their families.
Our staff and physicians have played an active role in improving access to care and the processes in which we deliver our services through an enhanced quality improvement program and the implementation of our Solutions for Patient Safety agenda.
Together with our staff, patients, families, redevelopment teams and donors, we researched and designed the IWK’s new Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The first phase of this world-class facility opened in April. This unit’s leading-edge technology and private rooms, allowing families to stay with their babies, is proof that we are better together.
In the year ahead, we will be working hard to strengthen awareness of the IWK’s work throughout the region, particularity our expertise in women’s health services. We are inspired by our patients, families and health care partners who have challenged us to take an even more active role in women’s and pediatric services in communities throughout the region.
By believing in being “Better Together” and working with our community, we will continue to deliver on our mission to passionately pursue a healthy future for women, children, youth and families.
Our Highlights
Milestone Moments
Nurses Leading Nurses: It Starts with Me
The IWK Nursing Professional Practice Strategy rolls out across the organization with a focus on engaging front line nurses. Nurses Leading Nurses: It Starts with Me incorporates input from a broad array of sources including more than 150 front line nurses.
First Phase of Critical Care Redevelopment
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) North, the first phase of the full NICU redevelopment is completed. The largest and most complex redevelopment project ever undertaken at the IWK, features leading-edge technology and 19 private rooms, allowing families to stay with their babies.
New Spectrum App
The IWK Spectrum App was developed to provide clinicians in the IWK community with local guidelines for management of common infectious syndromes. Developed by the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program, Pharmacy, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, it provides better patient outcomes, including fewer adverse events and decrease in antimicrobial resistance related to antimicrobials.
Terry Fox PROFYLE
Dr. Jason Berman and Dr. Conrad Fernandez of the IWK join PROFYLE with other top scientists, clinicians, research centres, cancer charities and foundations from children’s hospitals across the country to create new hope for young people who need it most. Terry Fox PROFYLE is a pan-Canadian project to give children, adolescents and young adults who are out of conventional treatment options another chance to beat their cancer.
Early Labour Assessment Unit
The renovated Early Labour Assessment Unit (ELAU) opens providing exceptional care and services during labour and delivery. The new unit is located near the main women's entrance and consists of a triage area, private rooms and a common comfortable lounge area for pregnant women and their support person.
Ronald MacDonald Family Room
The Ronald McDonald Family Room relocates to the Goldbloom Pavillion allowing families to enjoy some of the familiar comforts of home while being just steps away from their child receiving medical care. At over 2000 square feet, the Halifax Family Room includes three overnight sleeping rooms, kitchen and laundry facilities, a play area, a wellness room, and a comfortable lounge with TV and Internet access.
Pharmacy Residency Program
IWK announces its pharmacy residency program, one of only three to be offered in a Canadian standalone children's hospital. The residency program allows specialized pharmacists to focus on women and children patient populations.
Proudly Raising the Mi’kmaq Flag
The IWK becomes the first health centre in Nova Scotia to permanently raise the Mi’kmaq flag, honouring the culture and traditions of Indigenous populations and partnering with them to improve health.
By the Numbers
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4,605
Babies Delivered
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33,485
Visits to Children's Emergency Department
-
266
LifeFlight Transfers
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208,846
Outpatient Clinic Visits
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4,375
Pediatric Surgeries
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3,631
Women's Health Surgeries
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6,816
Mammograms
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14,986
Acute Inpatient Admissions
-
1,203
Learners
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706
Approximate Staff, Volunteers and Learners Involved in Research Initiatives
Our Team
IWK Staff and Physicians
We are proud of the work we do and of each other. Our teams include employees, researchers, learners and contractors, working in conjunction with physicians, scientific and affiliated staff. With over 3,000 staff and 326 physicians, our strong team supports patients and family needs in four provinces, through multiple sites as we extend our reach into our communities.
IWK Foundation
As the fundraising partner of the IWK Health Centre, the IWK Foundation and its donors are champions of excellence in women’s and children’s health. Maritimers have helped build the IWK and through their continued generosity it has evolved as a world-class facility for our region’s women, children, youth and families. Last year, donors contributed over $15 million to the IWK’s most urgent care priorities.
Volunteer Resources
Through Volunteer Resources, more than 800 community members offer their time and passion to a variety of programs throughout the IWK. Our volunteers partner with paid staff in implementing the mission and vision of the health centre while playing a key role in our efforts to passionately pursue a healthy future for women, children, youth and families.
Patient and Family Partners
The Family Leadership Council (FLC) and the Youth Advisory Council (YAC) were established over ten years ago and both have grown to be a driving force in ensuring the IWK is continuously developing our practices related to the principals of Patient and Family Centered Care: respect and dignity, information sharing, participation and collaboration. Today there are over 90 Patient & Family Faculty Partners across the IWK working as co-creators in an effort to ensure we are developing structures and processes that best reflect the principles of patient and family centered care.
IWK Auxiliary
Since its inception in 1946, the Auxiliary has been supporting the IWK Health Centre’s mission. For over 70 years, the Auxiliary has provided funding for research, the purchase of non-medical and medical equipment, and various capital campaigns. Indeed, the Auxiliary’s presence is evident everywhere throughout the IWK Health Centre. Since 1946 the Auxiliary has given over 8.6 million dollars to the IWK Health Centre.
Our Community
Financial