First transitional health centre in N.S. prepares to welcome patients
CBC
Nova Scotia Health's first transitional health centre will start accepting patients on Tuesday.
The goal of the new West Bedford Transitional Health Centre is to focus on patients who aren't ready to go home, but no longer need the level of care that comes with an acute care bed.
Dr. Christy Bussey, the medical executive director for the central zone, says it's a recurring problem in the Nova Scotia health-care system. Patients often stay in acute care beds far too long — to the point where their condition starts to worsen.
"We know that lack of mobility is probably the common reason that patients stay in hospital," said Bussey. "We need to target that specifically here at West Bedford so patients can maintain their skills and improve them with time."
Bussey said the new facility will lessen the number of patients who end up "over-medicalized." In other words, constant checkups, treatment and acute care can sometimes have diminishing returns.
"Isolation is a factor for patients in an acute care environment too," she said. "Any of us who have been in hospitals, we know that that's not a restorative environment."
Two patients from the central zone are scheduled to move into the new transitional centre Tuesday, with 68 more set to arrive within the next three months.
Nova Scotia Health will refer patients 18 years and over to the centre. It'll be led by a team of three nurse practitioners with support from visiting physicians. It's hoped that by freeing up acute care beds for more urgent patients, there will be less pressure on overall bed capacity.
Officials with Nova Scotia Health say this will have the added benefit of improving both emergency department and ambulance offload wait times and contribute to better morale for staff and patients.
Bussey said extended and unnecessary stays in acute care beds are a persistent problem.
"I'm on call this weekend and I can tell you that among my list of patients there are going to be several that do not need to be in hospital," she said.
"But they still need some time. They still may need patient teaching. They still may need a bit more mobility before they go home. And if they send patients home straight out of acute care too quickly there is a high risk they're going to have to come back in."
The building is owned by Shannex, which operates long-term care and retirement facilities in Nova Scotia. Shannex plans to open another 110-bed centre directly next door on Hogan Court in 2026 to offer similar services.
Its president, Jason Shannon, said the new centre marks a new phase of collaboration between Nova Scotia Health and Shannex.
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