by Sarah Hutchison, Chief Executive Officer, OntarioMD
OntarioMD’s first Digital Health and Virtual Care Day was a huge success, with more than 3,000 engaged attendees from around the globe engaging virtually in a series of high-value sessions about the future of Digital Health.
Topics encompassed everything from practical pointers on virtual care, to the latest know-how on virtual billing, and a demonstration on how to improve population health data using the EMR-enabled tool Insights4Care.
For those who may have missed it, recordings of the keynotes and information sessions can be viewed on the conference page of OntarioMD.ca at https://ontariomd.live/live-streams.
It was the first time since our annual showcase conference was launched as the EMR: Every Step Conference in 2012 that it was entirely virtual and, judging by the response, virtual events as well as virtual care – will transform the future of our engagement.
We surpassed the previous attendance records of our former in-person conference and attracted participation from 22 countries. This event maintains its position as Canada’s largest clinician-centred digital health learning and networking conference series.
Participants, including clinicians, system stakeholders and vendors, began the day with keynote addresses by Matt Anderson, President and CEO of Ontario Health, and former federal health minister Dr. Jane Philpott, now special advisor to the Ontario Government on the new Ontario Health Data Platform (OHDP).
Our keynote speakers reinforced the idea that successful delivery of all aspects of our complex health care system — from the local patient-centred care overseen by the Ontario Health Teams (OHTs) to the linking of health data to improve clinical research — is dependent on the evolution of digital solutions.
Dr. Philpott told us the pandemic has propelled the health care system and those who work within it to do things in virtual care delivery and remote care that we have wanted to do for decades, and that this has resulted in even more benefit for patients. But the pandemic has also revealed cracks in the digital health landscape, she said, including a lack of uniformity in data standards across provinces, and across Canada.
Philpott said the Premier’s Office in Ontario has issued several “challenge questions,” for the OHDP, using big data to answer questions about pandemic issues including vaccine rollout, containment strategies, health system resources, and vulnerable populations and health equity. The project will result in the largest collection of health data in Canada.
Mr. Anderson cautioned that Ontario’s health funding infrastructure needs to change alongside transformations of the health care system to ensure that resources are in alignment with the more integrated systems we are creating through the use of digital technologies.
This virtual event has laid the groundwork for the future as OntarioMD works to connect systems, clinicians and providers and deliver helpful guidance and thought leadership in our increasingly complex and evolving health care system. With the positive feedback on this conference, we will continue to focus on delivering content that is relevant to our participants. OntarioMD has more virtual learning planned throughout the year to be conducted by our knowledgeable staff or our Peer Leaders, who are digital health experts and early adopters of virtual care tools.
Whether in person, or virtually, we look forward to connecting with you all again at next year’s conference, sharing more ideas, and hearing new perspectives on the future of digital and virtual health care.
We want to keep the dialogue on digital health and virtual care going throughout the year. Let us know which topics you would find most valuable for your patients or your practice by sending ideas to info@ontariomd.com or in the comment field below. Advice with digital health systems, virtual care tools or your EMR, is always available by requesting support from support@ontariomd.com.
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