E-QIP News is your source for information, updates and insights about E-QIP – our sector-wide Quality Improvement (QI) initiative that aims to improve the client experience and outcomes across Ontario’s mental health and addictions sector.
E-QIP is a partnership between Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario (CMHA Ontario), Addictions and Mental Health Ontario (AMHO) and Health Quality Ontario (HQO).
Introducing E-QIP’s provincial leadership: Michael Dunn (CMHA Ontario) and Sandra Cunning (AMHO)
E-QIP News is the place for information, updates and insights about E-QIP – our sector-wide Quality Improvement (QI) initiative that aims to improve the client experience and outcomes across Ontario’s mental health and addictions sector.
Introducing Us!
Let’s introduce ourselves – we are Michael Dunn of CMHA Ontario and Sandra Cunning of AMHO.
Together we are the provincial leadership for E-QIP, representing two of the three sponsoring organizations. HQO is our third E-QIP partner. With a leadership role in facilitating quality care across the health care sector in Ontario, HQO is supporting this initiative to expand the focus on and capacity for QI within community mental health and addictions services in the province.
Across the province. Across the sector.
While E-QIP provides leadership at the provincial level we know that the success of any QI initiative requires leadership and support at all levels, especially within each organization.
That’s why it was so important for us to meet with professionals from across Ontario, hear what is happening regionally, and see first-hand how many knowledgeable and skilled quality leaders and champions we have in our sector!
Hearing your commitment to QI was inspiring.
We want to build on this existing commitment to providing high-quality, person-centred care to individuals and families.
We also want to build on the strong, working partnerships you have developed to deliver services – partnerships that will form the basis for learning and mentoring.
Imagine a time when you are confident that the interventions you use everyday are the right ones, because you have the ability to review your work, access to the latest developments, and examine data that informs your practice.
Imagine a time when both clients and providers can have the utmost confidence in the efficacy of mental health and addiction treatment options, because knowledge and research on treatments is widely known and available.
Imagine a time when services were accessible and available with little to no wait times for all those who need them, because the sector worked collaboratively to reduce wait times, but also offered additional supports to those who were waiting for services.
E-QIP will lay the groundwork across Ontario’s community mental health and addictions sector towards creating a world where those things can happen.
Leading by Passion
We both have incredible passion for the change that’s possible when there is a collaborative and comprehensive commitment to quality. Here’s why:
E-QIP is about collaboration. Three organizations – Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario (CMHA Ontario), Addictions and Mental Health Ontario (AMHO) and Health Quality Ontario (HQO) – have come together to facilitate a culture of QI in the community mental health and addictions sector.
"For me, the pursuit of quality is about caring deeply for the relationships we have with others. Quality cannot be separated from our work – it’s the driver behind our work with people.
To me, working with quality is the combined, unceasing efforts of everyone at all levels of the organization to maximize the value of our services as defined by the clients and families who put their trust in the mental health and addictions system.
I think we are at a time in Ontario when we are moving away from counting numbers of visits or contacts as a way of quantifying the effectiveness of our services. I think there is a real hunger to examine data that more meaningfully captures the quality of our work as a sector and how individuals and families experience our services. Using this data to guide our clinical, organizational and system decisions and improvements will translate to better care for Ontarians and it is exciting to be part of a project that will help support this movement."
- Michael Dunn
"Quality is a way of working and being that is woven into all aspects of what we do and serves as the basis for true evidence-informed practice. E-QIP brings together Quality, Evidence, Implementation and Partnership to support existing local QI initiatives that are focusing on effective, timely, equitable, safe, client-centred care. Our goal is to achieve common language, approaches, tools, and processes and to support our community partners and the sector in moving forward on QI."
- Dr. Sandra Cunning
As a collaborative initiative, we are committed to providing regular updates on the progress of the E-QIP work across the province. And, we would love to hear from you, if you have any comments or questions about E-QIP.
Sandra Cunning Michael Dunn
Director, Quality Improvement Director, Quality Improvement
AMHO CMHA Ontario
Regional workshops in 7 Ontario cities, with over 129 participants, have wrapped up.
Themes from our workshops: QI is a priority in many organizations; people want to learn more with a focus on indicators, data management and getting access to resources; tailored efforts are needed for Francophone and Indigenous communities; and clients and families need to be involved every step of the way.
Our learnings are informing next steps in the E-QIP work.
We recently wrapped up our province-wide regional workshop tour.
7 cities …
5 weeks …
129 participants …
It sounds like a concert tour! Of course, it wasn’t a concert tour, but it was just as exhilarating.Thank you to everyone who attended, shared their wisdom and experience, and provided us with valuable insight about QI. Everything we heard is helping to shape the next phase of our E-QIP work.
You told us what quality meant to you:
As well, several themes emerged from our regional workshops, and all of them were based on a consistent theme of wide-spread interest in Quality Improvement amongst community mental health and addictions providers. Here’s an overview of what we heard:
Many organizations have adopted QI practices and are enthusiastic to participate in E-QIP to further support their work.
There is a desire for a collaborative space to be able to talk, share material, practices and initiatives and support peer-to-peer learning.
Organizations and leaders are interested in developing indicators of quality.
Organizations indicated a need for additional resources to support QI and data management across the sector.
There needs to be a specific effort to ensure that we include and support our providers working with Francophone and Indigenous clients, families and communities.
It is important that we do this work thoughtfully and ensure that everything we do is aligned.
Clients and families are involved in all levels of what you do from feedback to hiring and governance – engaging them in this work is imperative.
Beyond the themes, participants offered a wide range of insights on their QI work, and left us with some notable quotes that illustrate what we heard:
“Staff and teams have embraced a QI culture, but people are still doing QI off the sides of their desks!”
“The most genuine QI comes from staff. They see the real quality!”
“In our case, failure contributed to our success. We grew so quickly we were tripping over ourselves. We knew we had to pause, get purposeful, and get better.”
“Are you willing to put your name to it?”
Although our formal regional consultations are complete, we are always interested in hearing from people across the sector. A key part of our roles, is to continue reaching out to our organizations across Ontario, but we also encourage you to connect with us at any time. Most importantly, we encourage you to find ways to connect to E-QIP that work for you and your organization.
Introducing ways to get involved: E-QIP Advisory Committee, Community of Practice, Quality Improvement and Data Coaching
Webinar: July 20th from 12:00 -12:45 pm to learn more! Register now!
With the discovery phase nearly complete, E-QIP is moving into the next phase of the work. Our regional consultations have informed the way forward. To ensure E-QIP’s success, we’re building a strong foundation of organization, processes and resources, starting with an organizational structure:
We also recognize the importance of ongoing input and leadership from across the sector and alignment with other quality initiatives. An E-QIP Advisory Group will be set-up with representation from leaders in the mental health and addictions sector, as well as HQO, the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, individuals with lived experience and families and other key stakeholders. Their role will be to advise on E-QIP activities and support alignment with other initiatives in the province.
As we enter this next phase, we are pleased to share the list of supports and resources that E-QIP will be offering the sector:
Collaborative Community of Practice (CoP) – E-QIP supports the entire sector through a Collaborative Community of Practice – comprised of like-minded leaders from Ontario’s community mental health and addictions sector interested in advancing QI practices. It’s a primarily web-based collaborative space, where people can come together to share, learn, develop and discuss anything about QI.
E-QIP Quality Improvement and Data Coaching – To support organizations and individuals, we will be offering individual and organizational coaching that will be tailored to the level of readiness in order to support organizations and providers in moving forward in their QI abilities and journeys.
QI and Data Coaches -- QI coaches and Data and Decision Support coaches with direct experience and sector knowledge will be available for project coaching, agency (organization) coaching, and support for the E-QIP Community of Practice.
The E-QIP coaching and collaboration is exploring a variety of approaches to meet local and sector needs. These include:
Web-based collaborative and coaching
Self-directed learning and tools
QI training (introductory and advanced)
Project and organizational coaching
Register now!On July 20th, from 12:00 – 12:45 p.m. we’ll be holding a Webinar to provide our branches and members with more information about each of these coaching and QI support offerings and how to apply for or access each of them.
QI and Data Coaching Webinar: July 20: 12:00 -12:45.Register now!
Share your QI success stories. In 250 words or less, tell us about what you wanted to accomplish, what changes you made, and how you measured improvement. Client and staff quotes that illustrate the impact of the change are welcome too!
Our invitation is an open call. Contact us anytime.
Our commitment to you: regular updates from us, as the E-QIP work continues to progress and develop.
Sandra Cunning Michael Dunn
AMHO CMHA Ontario
(416) 490-8900 (416) 977-5580 ex.4164
E-QIP is delivered through partnership of
Addictions and Mental Health Ontario (AMHO),
Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario, and
Health Quality Ontario (HQO).
