Exterior of Queens General Hospital. Photo Ed Halverson
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed on Friday (July 11).
The ER had closed this Wednesday but reopened Thursday this week.
The ER is supposed to be open 24 hours daily from 8 a.m. Monday to 1:30 p.m. Friday. Nova Scotia Health gave no reason for the Wednesday or Friday closures.
In the past, officials have told QCCR it was because of inadequate staffing levels.
Virtual urgent care is available for some conditions at Queens General every day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Patients of Queens Family Health can access the same-day clinic Monday to Friday for problems that require urgent treatment by calling 902-354-3322.
Anyone experiencing a medical emergency should call 911. For general health advice and information, people can call 811 to speak to a registered nurse 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed Wednesday. (Communications Nova Scotia)
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed on Wednesday. It will reopen Thursday at 8 a.m.
The ER is usually open 24 hours daily from 8 a.m. Monday to 1:30 p.m. Friday. Nova Scotia Health gave no reason for the Wednesday closure.
Virtual urgent care is available for some conditions at Queens General every day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Patients of Queens Family Health can access the same-day clinic for problems that require urgent treatment by calling 902-354-3322.
Anyone experiencing a medical emergency should call 911. For general health advice and information, people can call 811 to speak to a registered nurse 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Lauren Murphy is the director of recruitment and volunteer services with Nova Scotia Health. (Nova Scotia Health photo)
Nova Scotia Health is looking for more Nova Scotians to fill hundreds of jobs around the province.
The department is holding its second annual provincial career fair on Thursday (March 27) from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 11 locations around Nova Scotia.
The closest one for Queens County residents will be in Bridgewater at the Michelin Social Club, 221 Logan Rd.
Lauren Murphy, the director of recruitment and volunteer services with Nova Scotia Health, says last year’s event attracted about 3,000 people and led to more than 220 people being hired.
“It’s really an opportunity to showcase our roles and jobs and talk to Nova Scotians about our opportunities we have at Nova Scotia Health,” she says.
“Because we’re hosting it from coast to coast in the province it’s also an opportunity for people in their own communities to find a job there so they don’t have to leave.”
Murphy says job seekers will be able to speak to hiring managers from all parts of Nova Scotia Health.
“That’s also the beauty of showcasing the amount of positions that we have. We had admin staff hired … but we also had diagnostic imaging technologists, we had folks who are going to be supporting our pharmacies, we had (emergency) nurses and specialty nurses. It really was amazing to see the amount of people who showed up and were able to connect with a hiring manager and find a job.
“If you think about what it takes to run a hospital, obviously doctors are critical but there are so many more moving parts and pieces to it. We’re a 30,000-people employer. We’re Atlantic Canada’s largest and we really do cover everything you can think of.”
Murphy says being able to talk to somebody in person can help demystify the application process.
“Walking in there and being able to talk to people about such a wide variety is so much different than scrolling online and trying to doing your own research. … To be able to talk to someone who is living and breathing that job day in and day out … I really think that’s what bridges that gap between virtual and in-person.”
Job applicants will also be able to upload their resume using a QR code at the job fair. Murphy said Nova Scotia Health officials will follow up with applicants the week after the event who applied using the QR code to give them an update on their application.
She said she hopes to beat last year’s numbers, both for turnout and for hires.
“Any person that we can hire is a win. There are such amazing opportunites for internal advancement. So even if you take one job tomorrow, there’s a million different pathways you can take so you can have a fulsome career at Nova Scotia Health, which I think in a lot of companies these days, that’s pretty rare.”
More doctors and other health professionals from the U.S. want to move to Nova Scotia, according to Nova Scotia Health. (Province of Nova Scotia)
The unstable political situation in the United States may be good news for the Nova Scotia health care system.
More doctors and other health professionals working in the U.S. are looking to move north. One of the places they’re calling is Nova Scotia. And some of them also want to move to Queens County.
Lauren Murphy, director of recruitment and volunteer services with Nova Scotia Health, says they’ve seen an increase in applications from people from the U.S.
“Honestly, we’re hearing some pretty amazing stories,” she told QCCR this week.
“We’re hearing people who maybe have family members who are trans who don’t feel safe anymore. We’re hearing about people who are Canadians but have been living in the U.S. for years and working in their health care system and not feeling safe anymore and wanting to come back to Canada. We’re hearing from people who are internationally educated but living in the U.S. and again not feeling safe. It’s a scary time in the States and I do think people are seeing Canada as that safe space.”
Murphy said that the health care professionals reaching out to Nova Scotia Health recruiters are extremely qualified and experienced. They include doctors, nurses and other professionals.
“And the beauty is that the hospital setting in the U.S. is very very similar to what we have in Canada in terms of the level of care. And so being able to hire someone from the U.S., they can pretty much hit the ground running. As horrible as it is, maybe there is some silver lining that people can find a new home here in Nova Scotia and build roots and bring family or create families, and that’s great for our economy and great for us as a province.”
Murphy did not say how many doctors or other health professionals are interested in making the move from the U.S. to Nova Scotia.
According to data obtained in January 2024 by the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union, more than 1,000 health-care positions were still waiting to be filled in Nova Scotia. That includes professionals other than doctors and nurses.
And in March, about 96,000 Nova Scotians were still without a primary care provider. That was down from February’s number of just over 104,000. About nine per cent of the population is still looking for a family doctor or nurse practitioner.
Murphy acknowledged that there’s a global shortage of health-care professionals. Jurisdictions like Nova Scotia have been looking in other countries to fill those spots.
The process can take some time, especially as candidates navigate immigration and licensing requirements. Nova Scotia Health has its own immigration team to help make it easier for clinicians or other professionals to move here.
Nova Scotia recently opened a new centre to help speed up the licensing process for internationally trained physicians. It takes about 12 weeks to complete and doctors agree to practise in the province for at least three years.
Murphy says American-based doctors also ask her recruitment team about the differences in culture and taxation.
“It’s a huge step to move to a different country,” she said. “A lot of the conversations start off very exploratory. If you’re thinking about the U.S., you’re also potentially talking to a candidate who is coming from a state that doesn’t pay tax.
“But … we really are seeing people who are like, ‘No, we have to do this, we’re taking the plunge.’ And we’re really seeing those numbers now.”
Some of those doctors and other professionals are interested in moving to Queens County.
Dr. Al Doucet is the chair of the Queens General Hospital Foundation, which works with Nova Scotia Health to bring doctors to the area.
He was out of the country and unavailable for an interview Friday. But he said in a text message that the foundation is getting inquiries from physicians and physician assistants about moving here.
Nova Scotia Health recently named Liverpool-based Dr. Alison Freeman the MD recruitment and retention lead for the South Shore.
To help with those recruitment efforts, Nova Scotia Health is holding a provincial career fair on March 27 at 11 locations around the province. Officials will be at the Michelin Social Club in Bridgewater from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Murphy says the job fair targets Nova Scotians who are interested in a first-time position with Nova Scotia Health or transferring to a different part of the province. More than 220 people were hired through last year’s job fair.
Nova Scotia Health is holding a drop-in clinic in Caledonia on March 20. (Province of Nova Scotia)
Nova Scotia Health is holding a mobile primary care clinic in Caledonia next Thursday (March 20) from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
The drop-in clinic will be held at the North Queens Community Health Centre.
Only certain health issues can be seen at the drop-in clinic. Nova Scotia Health says it can address only non-urgent conditions such as prescription refills or renewals, minor respiratory or gastrointestinal problems, muscle pain, rashes or urinary tract infections.
People are being asked to have their health cards and a list of their medications with them.
Medical staff will screen patients to make sure they can treat the concern at the clinic.
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool is also now open 24 hours a day from Mondays at 8 a.m. to Fridays at 1:30 p.m.
Nova Scotia Health is also organizing drop-in clinics in Bridgewater at the Medical Arts Building on Glen Allen Drive. Those are set for Sun., March 16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wed., March 26 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. and Sun., March 30 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Nova Scotia Health has paused the text message notification feature for appointments on the YourHealthNS app.. (Nova Scotia Government YouTube channel)
Nova Scotia Health is still working on glitches in its new text message and appointment reminder service through the YourHealthNS app.
It suspended the new features last Wednesday when some people reported getting incorrect information about their appointments.
At least 2,100 texts, or about 10 per cent of all messages, were sent to phones with the wrong information. Other messages weren’t clear whether the appointment was in-person or virtual. And some got notices of appointments that didn’t even exist.
Nova Scotia Health said Monday that it has introduced a seven-day delay before appointments appear in the YourHealthNS app.
Appointments will only appear for the coming month. And notifications will be stopped on specialist appointments not made through hospital booking systems, like private clinics.
The text message reminder feature will be on hold while officials test the changes and make sure they work properly, Nova Scotia Health said.
About 10 per cent of Nova Scotians are still looking for a family doctor or nurse practitioner. (Communications Nova Scotia)
More people are dropping off the Need a Family Practice Registry in Nova Scotia.
According to numbers released Tuesday by Nova Scotia Health, 9,200 people either found a doctor in the past month or were removed from the list.
Just over 110,000 Nova Scotians are still looking for a primary care provider. That’s down from more than 119,670 on Dec. 4. About 10.5 per cent of the population does not have reliable access to primary care.
Nova Scotia Health officials have been contacting people on the list to confirm they still need a doctor or nurse practitioner.
Health officials stopped providing breakdowns by region last summer. The last update in June showed that about 10 per cent of Queens County residents were still looking for a doctor or nurse practitioner.
More information about ultrasound reports is now available on the YourHealthNS app. (Communications Nova Scotia)
Nova Scotians can now see more information from their ultrasound reports on the YourHealthNS app.
Scans completed from Aug. 5 onward were available as of Monday. The report includes the body part examined, the reason for the scan, findings and a comparison with any previous ultrasounds.
Results will be available 14 days after the ultrasound.
The reports will add to the information like date, time and location of the scan currently available through the app. Images won’t be available, according to a news release from Nova Scotia Health.
In July, the province expanded access to the health records in the app to everybody across the province, who are 16 and older with a valid Nova Scotia health card.
More than 309,000 ultrasounds were performed in Nova Scotia in 2023.
Nova Scotia Health staff are calling people on the need-a-family-practice registry to make sure they still need a primary care provider. (Pixabay)
A group of 40 student recruits has started calling Nova Scotians to see if they still need a family doctor.
And with more than 160,000 people across Nova Scotia on the need-a-family-practice registry, it’s going to be a busy summer.
Noella Whelan, the senior director of the primary care and chronic disease management network for Nova Scotia Health, is heading up the project.
She said the department did a similar telephone campaign last summer, when more than 152,000 were on the list. That resulted in more than 21,000 people identified who could be struck from the waitlist. It also resulted in 6,000 people being assigned a primary care provider.
“Our systems are not automated so it relies on the individuals that put their name on the list to take their names off the list,” she told QCCR.
“This is a more proactive mechanism for us to reach out to individuals and determine if they have already been connected to a primary care practice in Nova Scotia. And so often we do find that there are individuals that have been connected to a primary care provider who are still on the list.”
Whelan said they doubled the number of temporary staff making calls this summer, from 20 last year. She said there are about 10 other permanent Nova Scotia Health employees on the project in supervisory and co-ordinator roles. Hiring the student recruits will cost about $532,000, according to a Nova Scotia Health spokeswoman.
“We have heard from patients and families the concern about where to go for care,” Whelan said. “So we want to make sure we’re connecting with folks to understand, do they need a primary care provider? Do we have their contact information so that when we reach out to them do we have accurate information? … Out of the campaign last summer there were a number of tools developed to help individuals understand where to go for care. We just want to make sure that those that are waiting know where to access care.”
Operators will also be confirming with people whether their doctor has retired. Whelan says the department doesn’t always know if a general practitioner has retired.
“We want to make sure we’ve confirmed that and are able to then connect them to a primary care provider when one becomes available.”
Whelan says the project will also give Nova Scotia Health a chance to tell people where else they can access care while they wait for a doctor or nurse practitioner. Staff will also remind people to fill out the health questionnaire on the need-a-family-practice registration site. People can also use that form to remove themselves from the registry.
“I think it is money well spent. Certainly we’ve heard from the public, from patients’ families that they want a more direct contact with the system to understand how to navigate services.”
Calls will show up as either unknown name and number or from a blocked caller.
Staff won’t ask for any personal information besides the last four digits of your Nova Scotia health card and your birth date.
They will also ask for confirmation of your phone number and physical and email addresses.
“If they do receive a call and they are not able to respond, if we have their email on file, we’ll send them an email, and say, ‘We’ve attempted to call you, please call us back. Or we’ll make a call at this time during the next day or so.’ That way, Nova Scotians will know this is a legitimate initiative.”
Whelan said in the first week of calls, they haven’t had many people refuse to answer to give information.
“The students are just in a week or so of calls, so most folks are engaging in conversation and able to verify it is Nova Scotia Health calling. We certainly do have a few (refusals), but we expect that anyway.”
Nova Scotia Health will be calling people over the next several weeks to verify that they’re still looking for a primary care provider. (Pixabay)
If you’re one of the 1,100 people in Queens County still looking for a primary care provider, you may be getting a call from Nova Scotia Health.
Officials will be phoning people on the need-a-family-practice registry over the next several weeks to confirm whether they’re still looking for a doctor or nurse practitioner.
According to a release from Nova Scotia Health, people will be called from either a blocked number, one they don’t recognize or an unknown name and number.
Staff won’t ask you to provide any personal information besides the last four digits of your Nova Scotia health card and your birth date.
They will also ask for confirmation of your phone number and physical and email addresses.
According to the news release, this is so that the department can contact people when a doctor or nurse practitioner is available to take new patients.
Health staff will also be calling people who added their name to the list because their provider told them they’d be retiring. This is to confirm whether their doctor retired.
The registry hasn’t been updated since June 1. According to CBC News, opposition politicians this week accused the government of withholding up-to-date numbers on how many people still need a doctor or nurse practitioner.
As of June 1, 160,234 Nova Scotians were still on the registry. About 10 per cent of Queens County residents are still looking for a primary care provider. That compares to about 23 per cent of the population in the Bridgewater area.
QCCR will have an interview on Friday with Noella Whalen, the senior director of the primary care and chronic disease management network with Nova Scotia Health. Whalen is leading the project.
Michelle Thompson, Nova Scotia’s health and wellness minister, announces at a news conference on Wednesday that the YourHealthNS app will be expanded to all Nova Scotians over 16. (Communications Nova Scotia via Zoom)
The Nova Scotia government is expanding access to a $15-million smartphone app that lets patients see their own medical records.
The government gave early access to 13,824 patients in six clinics around the province from January to April to the YourHealthNS app. One of those clinics was Queens Family Health in Liverpool.
After gathering feedback from users in the pilot, it announced Wednesday that anyone over 16 with a valid Nova Scotia health card can now download the app and access its features.
The biggest draw of the app is the ability for people to access their own medical records, prescriptions, lab and test results and immunizations. It also allows you to see your hospital, clinic or other medical appointments.
Patients can also schedule some appointments through the app.
Michelle Thompson is Nova Scotia’s health and wellness minister. She said the app helps give Nova Scotians control over their own health care.
“We started small with a test-and-try approach, but the results were huge,” Thompson said at a Wednesday news conference. “Those who used it liked it. It improved their health care experience, gave them more control over their care, but most importantly, it put health care back in their hands.
“You can now carry your medical history in your pocket wherever you go.”
Officials with Nova Scotia Health told reporters at a technical briefing that more than 300,000 Nova Scotians have already downloaded the app.
Of the pilot project participants, 98 per cent said they would continue to use the app, while 30 per cent said they felt they didn’t need to see their primary care provider because they had access to their records.
Officials could not say how many people actually used the app. They said that because of privacy concerns, they did not track individual users and how they used the app. The information came from a voluntary feedback survey in the app. Officials did not know how many people responded to the survey.
“We know from our evaluation here but also from other jurisdictions around the world, this empowers patients,” said Dr. Aaron Smith, medical executive director, Northern Zone, and provincial medical executive director.
“This allows patients to manage their own health. And the impact on providers is also profound. We know folks feel more engaged in their health, they better understand their health. It allows a significant numbers of folks to avoid unnecessary visits to both emergency department and primary care facilities. It allows physicians to really focus on what they need to do, which is care of acutely ill people.”
The YourHealthNS app has cost the government $15 million in total, with $2 million of that spent on the pilot project and another $3 million for the rollout to all of Nova Scotia.
Officials said Wednesday that protecting people’s privacy was one of their primary concerns.
“We are ensuring that people’s information is safe and citizens can see their own information and other than a few folks who will do audit functions to ensure everything is fine, there will be nobody else that can see that information,” Thompson said.
During the pilot phase, some participants in Queens County said that they either had no information available or the information they saw changed from day to day. Others said they could see all their records.
Scott McKenna, chief information officer for Nova Scotia Health, said that everybody should be able to see their health records now.
“Those are the lessons we’ve learned from the pilot. Now we’ve matched records a little bit differently, put some new algorithms in place to make sure we’re matching records based with a high level of confidence on health card number and date of birth. … Those individuals would see their health records now.”
Thompson said she’s confident that people will see information that’s reliable and up to date.
“The point of a test and try is that we bring individuals into the pilot. We understand the technology, we understand the interface with the people who are using the technology and we build on their feedback and their experience.
“We’re very grateful to those initial pilot participants. It really gave us the opportunity to understand the app, build the app, get their feedback, see what the experience was and move on from there. And so I feel very confident in the team and their ability to continue to deliver the iterations of this app. And I do believe the app will be of huge benefit to Nova Scotians.”
More records like primary care visits with doctors, nurse practitioners or through pharmacy clinics will be added over the coming months, Thompson said, with the goal of having all of that information available by the end of September.
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed at various times this weekend. (Communications Nova Scotia)
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed at 1:30 p.m. on Friday until 8 a.m. Sat., June 29
It will close again at 1:30 p.m. on Sun., June 30 and reopen Mon., July 1 at 8 a.m.
The ER at South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater will be open.
Nova Scotia Health advises people experiencing a medical emergency to call 911. For general health advice, people can contact 811 to speak to a registered nurse 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Patients of Queens Family Health can call the same-day clinic through the week for new and emerging conditions at 902-354-3322. Hours are based on provider availability.
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed at various times over this week. (Communications Nova Scotia)
Here is when the emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed over the next week:
from 1:30 p.m. Wed., May 22, to Thurs., May 23 at 8 a.m.
from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fri., May 24
from 5 a.m. Sat., May 25 to Sun., May 26 at 8 a.m.
from 1:30 p.m. Tues., May 28 to Wed., May 29 at 8 a.m.
Nova Scotia Health advises people with urgent medical needs to call 911. Patients of Queens Family Health can access the same-day clinic from Monday to Friday by calling 902-354-3322. Clinic hours are based on staff availability.
The ER at South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater will be open.
Low-income Nova Scotians being treated for cancer and dealing with hair loss can get a $300 rebate toward the cost of a wig. (Communications Nova Scotia)
Nova Scotians going through cancer treatment can be reimbursed $300 if they buy a wig to help deal with hair loss.
To be eligible, people must be a Nova Scotia resident with a valid health card, have a gross family income of $35,000 a year or less, be enrolled in the drug assistance for cancer patients program and have no private insurance that covers the cost of a wig.
“A cancer diagnosis is scary enough,” Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thompson said in a news release Thursday.
The government estimates about 360 patients could be eligible for the one-time rebate, which will cost about $110,000.
The province also provides a rebate for mastectomy breast prostheses and two programs that support low-income cancer patients – the boarding, transportation and ostomy programs, and the drug assistance for cancer patients.
COVID-19 immunization clinic setting up. Photo: Nova Scotia Government
Nova Scotians at the highest risk for severe illness from Covid-19 can now book their spring dose.
The booster will be available from March 25 to May 31.
The groups eligible to book right now are those 65 or older, people 18 or over in long-term care, nursing homes or residential care facilities; people who are moderately or severely immunocompromised and those 50 or older who are indigenous or black.
Dr. Robert Strang said in a news release that cases are steady in Nova Scotia. But he urged people at the highest risk of infection to get their spring booster.
People who did not get a dose in the fall or winter can get the spring dose, even if they are not part of the specific groups mentioned.
Rosalee Smith is one of the Queens County residents participating in the YourHealthNS app pilot project. (Rick Conrad)
It’s been about six weeks since the Nova Scotia government launched a pilot project to allow some Nova Scotians to check their medical records through the YourHealthNS app.
Some 12,000 patients at four clinics around the province were given early access to their lab and X-ray results, list of medications, and visits to the ER and their primary care provider.
Nova Scotia Health says it’s part of giving people more involvement and control over their care, and to help them make more informed decisions.
About 3,700 patients at Queens Family Health in Liverpool are eligible to participate. The other project sites are in New Waterford, Westville and Greenwood.
For some, it’s been a frustrating experience.
Rosalee Smith of Eagle Head said she was eager to sign on to the app when she heard about the pilot project.
“I found it frustrating, because I guess my original understanding (was) perhaps there was going to be a little more information available than maybe what there is.”
Smith says she seems to get different information every time she checks the app.
“I’m not sure how valuable that piece will be until I understand what the information’s supposed to provide. I’ve gone on to the app several times. And sometimes there’s records there and sometimes there isn’t. I’ve never seen any records of my primary care visits, never seen any records of my blood work results.”
A week after initially speaking to QCCR, Smith said she could see a partial list of her medications, her lab results, ER visits, but no bloodwork results and no primary care visits.
Her mother, who has a different primary care provider, was able to see all of her health visits, but her medications and lab results were incomplete.
She says friends of hers had the same experience — sometimes their records were there and sometimes they were incomplete. She said other people told her their records were complete.
Smith filled out three feedback surveys through the app. When she didn’t get a response, she contacted Nova Scotia Health directly and sent a two-page form to correct her medical record.
She even left a comment on a sponsored Facebook post on the weekend from Nova Scotia Health about the app.
No one had responded to any of her concerns, until Wednesday afternoon, when she got a reply in response to her Facebook comment. She was told her complaint was forwarded to the department’s technology department and that someone would contact her directly.
“I think it’s a good app,” Smith says.
“I think the features and the types of things that we’re trying to put out here for information, it’s good. But let’s do it right. And if we’re in the pilot project, listen to us when we make the comments.”
Andrew Danylewich of Liverpool checked the app when the pilot project launched. He said he was able to see only a list of his hospital and health visits. And that hasn’t changed since.
“But I haven’t been able to see my labs and medications. I did check to see if my prescriptions were up and they weren’t there yet. It’s not terribly useful yet, but I can see potential in the future once they get it rolling properly.”
Officials with Nova Scotia Health said this week that patients are giving them some good feedback on the app, and that people seem eager to use it.
Scott McKenna, chief information officer with Nova Scotia Health, said in an interview on Monday that if people send their questions or concerns via the survey, someone is supposed to follow up.
“We need to ensure that we’re getting back to every citizen,” he said.
“Our teams are doing a really good job at that. Obviously, there are some individuals who we need to get back to on that. The intention of our staff is to look into every issue. … Because we have to make sure it works as it’s intended to work.”
Dr. Tara Sampalli is Nova Scotia Health’s senior director of implementation science and evaluation and global health systems planning.
She said department staff review the feedback every week so they can address concerns as they come up.
“Everybody is reviewing everything. Nothing is going unnoticed. We improve in real time. And that’s part of this. We want to hear. You’re providing us some really good information from the community and what people are seeing or not seeing.”
McKenna says that overall, response to the app has been positive. And that it seems to working for the majority of participants. But he urges people to keep sending feedback on the app, even though they may be frustrated.
He said staff are trying to consolidate records from disparate parts of the health care system, and that they’d rather give an incomplete record than an incorrect one.
The pilot project runs to the end of March. Those who have access to their records now won’t lose it when the pilot is over.
Sampalli says the department is working on a broader information update for Nova Scotians.
Rosalee Smith says she looks forward to that.
“I don’t want it to be political. This is about our health. So I think it’s good progress. I’m not here to bash. My point is if it’s not going to work right or if it’s got issues, then let’s figure out how to fix the issues.”
Some Nova Scotians will be able to access their medical records via the YourHealthNS app. (Communications Nova Scotia photo)
By Rick Conrad
Patients at Queens Family Health in Liverpool will be providing valuable input to Nova Scotia Health over the next few weeks as part of a group of people around the province with early access to their health records on the YourHealthNS app.
About 3,700 patients of the clinic can sign up and see their doctor and ER visits, medications, test results and immunization record. They must have a valid Nova Scotia health card and be 16 or over.
It’s part of a pilot project involving the Queens clinic and three others around the province to give Nova Scotians easier access to their health records. In total, about 12,000 people are eligible to participate. The other clinics are in New Waterford, Westville and Greenwood.
Nova Scotia Health will be sending out letters to the eligible patients at Queens Family Health. But people can start using the app now.
Dr. Ashley Miller, the chief medical information officer with Nova Scotia Health and IWK Health, says it can be costly or cumbersome now for patients to get access to their own records.
“So I think people are really appreciative of having a single source of truthful information related to health care, but they’re very much wanting to access their own health data,” she said in a recent interview.
“And I see this in my own patient population all the time. It’s very valuable to have access to your own information so that you can appropriately self advocate but also so that you can do research on your own. You can consult your own network of friends, colleagues, family to make decisions about your own health.”
Miller says officials wanted diversity in demographics and geography for the pilot.
“We were looking for clinics who were early adopters, people who understand the importance and potential of digital transformation in enhancing the experience of Nova Scotians. So it was a combination of working with the willing but also looking to have a representative sample so we could really learn from this pilot experience and inform our next steps.”
Queens Family Health has five family physicians and one nurse practitioner. Miller said they were also looking for clinics who would give regular feedback and evaluate how care was affected by using the app.
One of the goals is to cut down on unnecessary visits to the doctor’s office to get test results. They’re already getting feedback from around the province.
“Twenty-nine per cent of people who answered this survey so far said yes that in fact it actually prevented the need for a visit. So in a health care system where we know the demand exceeds the capacity currently, the potential for patients to gain access to care without needing to book an appointment with a provider is really appealing.”
Miller says that within the first day of the project’s launch last week, more than 700 lab and diagnostic records were accessed.
As for privacy, Miller says she understands if some patients are hesitant.
“One of the benefits of this application is that none of the personal health information is stored in the actual application itself.”
And she says people don’t have to participate or use the app if they’re unsure. If you do, however, you can opt out at any time.
Scott McKenna, Nova Scotia Health’s chief information officer, says they’ve put privacy and security “front and centre”.
“One of the principles of this is that we would rather miss one of your health records than serve you up incorrect health records,” he said in an interview.
“We’ve done a lot of matching with a high level of confidence across multiple fields to make sure that record’s confidence before we serve it up. And we may even hold back on your health records becasue we weren’t sure.”
Miller says she’s also not concerned about people diagnosing themselves instead of visiting their doctor. In fact, she says, research has shown that it’s better to give patients more control over their information.
“Patients are better able to interpret their own health care experience and their medications and their treatment as well as advocate for themselves when they have access to their data.”
Miller says she encourages patients in the pilot project to give feedback on the app.
Kim Masland, Queens MLA and Nova Scotia’s Public Works Minister, says chronic ER closures in her riding are worrisome. (Rick Conrad photo)
By Rick Conrad
Queens MLA Kim Masland says the Nova Scotia government is making progress in its efforts to keep the emergency department at Queens General Hospital open more often, but she admits there’s more work to do.
“I know right now we’ve been open pretty much 50 per cent of the time which is very, very concerning,” Masland said in an interview this week.
“We need to make sure that our ER is open and available to people when they need it. We’re 30 minutes away from Bridgewater, we’re further away to the next ER.”
She pointed to efforts by the Queens General Hospital Foundation and Nova Scotia Health recruiters to bring more health care workers to the area.
“We are making progress. We’ve recruited six (ER and family practice) doctors in the last year which is absolutely fabulous. But it’s a staffing issue. We need to make sure that we can recruit and then retain. So we’ll keep working at it.”
Masland and Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston were asked about the ER closures during a Q&A session at an event in Liverpool on Wednesday organized by the South Queens Chamber of Commerce.
The ER in Liverpool was closed all last weekend. And this week, it is open most days only from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. It will be closed all day Saturday. According to Nova Scotia Health, the ER was closed for part or all of the day for 13 days in November, 15 in December and 15 in January. A Nova Scotia Health official told QCCR in January that the Queens General ER needs 10 more nurses to be open more often.
Houston told the crowd Wednesday that the province has made many changes to how health care is delivered. He pointed to the expanded scope of practice for many health care workers, including pharmacists, nurse practitioners and others who are now able to do more of the duties once restricted to doctors.
“Our pharmacies did, since we started opening up this access path, almost 19,000 strep tests over the last three or four months. I can tell you where pretty much every one of those 19,000 people would have went if not for a pharmacy.
“So we’re really trying to mobilize everyone. … Then we can take a little bit of pressure off everyone else. And if we can take a little pressure off everyone else, then we can start to attract more people who want to be part of an innovative, leading edge health care system.”
Houston said that while there’s no quick fix, it’s important that people know that they don’t always have to wait in an ER for treatment.
“So we want to make sure that everyone knows where they can go to access the health care that they need. And it might be the emergency department and we want it to be open, but it doesn’t always have to be the emergency department for everything … when there’s something else that will work just as effectively.”
Masland says the province’s focus is on recruiting more health care professionals to the area.
“We’re very committed to improving health care and that’s where our focus is going to remain.”
Licensed physiotherapists in Nova Scotia will soon be able to order X-rays. (Matias Maiztegui photo via Pixabay)
By Rick Conrad
Physiotherapists in Nova Scotia will soon be able to order X-rays.
Physiotherapists employed by Nova Scotia Health or IWK Health can already order the scans. But the province will expand that ability to those in private practice in early spring.
“Ensuring all physiotherapists can request necessary X-rays for their patients means more timely access to the care people need,” Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thompson said Thursday in a news release.
“This change will reduce unnecessary demands on family physicians, nurse practitioners, and emergency departments, and save patients and physiotherapists time.”
Physiotherapists must be in good standing with the Nova Scotia College of Physiotherapists to request an X-ray.
Nova Scotia Health and IWK Health are working with the Nova Scotia College of Physiotherapists and the Nova Scotia Physiotherapy Association to get the practice up and running provincewide.
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool is on restricted hours until next week. (Rick Conrad photo)
By Rick Conrad
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be on restricted hours until next Wednesday (Feb. 14).
It will be open most days this week from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. It will be open all day Thursday (Feb. 8) at 8 a.m. It will be closed at 1:30 p.m. Friday, all of Saturday, and reopen Sunday at 8 a.m.
Here is when the ER will be closed this week, according to Nova Scotia Health:
from 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 6 and reopens Wednesday, Feb. 7 at 8 a.m.
from 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 7 and reopens Thursday. Feb. 8 at 8 a.m.
from 1:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 9 and reopens Sunday, Feb. 11 at 8 a.m.
from 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 11 and reopens Monday, Feb. 12 at 8 a.m.
from 1:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12 and reopens Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 8 a.m.
from 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 13 and reopens Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 8 a.m.
The ER at South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater will be open.
Patients of Queens Family Health can call 902-354-3322 for same-day treatment for certain conditions.
According to the latest numbers from Nova Scotia Health, as of January, 1,113 people in Queens County were still looking for a family doctor or nurse practitioner. That’s about 10 per cent of the population.
Some Nova Scotians will be able to access their medical records via the YourHealthNS app. (Communications Nova Scotia photo)
By Rick Conrad
Patients of Queens Family Health in Liverpool will be part of a pilot project that will give people access to their medical records through the YourHealthNS app.
About 12,000 patients at four clinics around Nova Scotia will get information from their clinic this week about how to log in to see their medical history.
The other participating clinics are the New Waterford Collaborative Practice, Westville Medical Clinic and Greenwood Family Health.
“We made it easier for Nova Scotians to navigate the healthcare system and now we’re taking it one step further by giving patients more access and control over their health information,” Premier Tim Houston said Tuesday in a news release.
“The addition of patient records makes it easy, convenient and faster for Nova Scotians to access their own information, all in one place, to better manage their own healthcare.”
Nova Scotia Health says patients can choose whether to participate and access their records. If they do, they’ll be able to see their complete health history.
That includes visits to their doctor or nurse practitioner, including date, time and reason; virtual care appointments; hospital and emergency department visits; their list of medications; lab results such as blood tests and information on diagnostic imaging scans like X-rays and MRIs.
The YourHealthNS app was launched in November 2023 at a cost of $10 million. It has been downloaded more than 175,000 times.
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool. (Rick Conrad photo)
By Rick Conrad
The emergency department at Queens General Hospital in Liverpool will be closed today from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Nova Scotia Health gave no reason for the temporary closure. This will be the 13th time this month that the emergency department has been closed for all or part of the day.
A Nova Scotia Health official told QCCR last week that the ER has a “significant” staff vacancy rate and needs to hire 10 more nurses. She did not know how many more doctors are needed.
The emergency department at South Shore Regional Hospital in Bridgewater is open. Or Nova Scotia Health suggests calling 911 if you have a medical emergency. For general health advice and information, call 811.
Patients of Queens Family Health can also call the same-day clinic at Queens General at 902-354-3322.
If you’re on the Need a Family Practice Registry, you can access VirtualCareNS.
