Archive for November, 2008

Please click on the links below to view the corresponding media coverage.

http://www.mykawartha.com/news/article/36413

ttp://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1391666

http://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1231026

http://www.chextv.com/newswatch/videoarchive_2008July.html

http://www.peterboroughexaminer.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1098277

October 2^nd, 2008 –After opening its doors in early July, the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic, located on the 3^rd floor of the Turnbull Medical Building, 170 Simcoe Street, Peterborough, hosted their official launch event earlier today. The clinic, which has been supported by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care through a partnership with the physicians and Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough, has been providing care for maternity patients from early pregnancy to 6 weeks postpartum, as well as newborn baby care up to six weeks of age. To date more than 2,000 patients have visited the clinic, the clinic physicians have delivered 96 babies and 47 babies are expected for the month of October.

Based on the Family Health Team structure and a patient-centred care model, the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic team includes Drs. Debra Boyce, Barbara Gow, Michelle Vilcini and Joan Himann, Breastfeeding Support Specialist Elly Hartwick, Advanced Practice Nurse Neghesti Gebru, Clinic Coordinator & RN Patti Fitzgerald, Dietitian Alyson Werger, Social Workers Tracy Condon & Stephanie Vilneff and medical secretaries Bonnie Copeland and Gaylene Rodrigues.

“It was our dream to create a maternity and newborn care clinic that was truly building on the confidence and competence of mothers and their family members at every interaction with our team,” said Dr. Debra Boyce, Physician Lead, Partners in Pregnancy Clinic. “We have had such a wonderful response from our patients and they are so grateful to have the additional resources such as our Breastfeeding Support Specialist, Advanced Practice Nurse, Registered Nurse, Dietitian and Social Workers to draw from. We can see the difference that this team approach to care is making to our patients and are very thankful to the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care for their support in this process.”

With only 3 months of operation the clinic has already forged partnerships with a number of community groups including a literacy initiative with the Department of Education at Trent University and a partnership with the Faculty of Nursing at Trent. The Partners in Pregnancy Clinic has also made a significant impact on the community as many parents have stopped by to donate their old baby clothes for new moms-to-be and a knitting group from Empress Gardens is donating baby bonnets and booties every week for newborns. Many people have also stopped in with flowers to wish the team well and see what the newly refurbished building looks like as it has been a landmark in the city since 1888 and has been redeveloped as one of Peterborough’s Heritage Buildings by Sevenhills Development.

“Once again Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough, under the direction of Dr. Harterre and Mr. Bill Casey, are establishing an innovative and effective way to service this community. The Partners in Pregnancy Clinic is a model that other communities will follow. This unique service offers specialized support to pregnant women and their families. The Government of Ontario promotes ground-breaking initiatives like the new Partners in Pregnancy Clinic, headed by Drs. Debra Boyce, Barbara Gow, Michelle Vilcini and Joan Himann, being opened here today,” said MPP Jeff Leal.

“Since the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic opened in early July the placements of new babies with family doctors has become a seamless transition for patients and health care providers, as the clinic has been supporting our Family Health Teams in caring for these babies for their first six weeks of life,” said Bill Casey, Executive Director, Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough.

“This care ensures that babies come to their family doctors with records, allows much more time for them to be rostered and provides the mother and baby with the highest quality of care possible during what can be a critical time,” concluded Dr. Don Harterre, Physician Lead, Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough.

Any pregnant patients that currently have a family physician in Peterborough can speak to their doctor about referring them to the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic at any time during their pregnancy. Women without a family doctor can self refer by contacting the clinic directly at (705) 741-1191. In addition to the maternity and newborn services, the registered nurses at the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic are certified to perform Pap smears and pelvic exams and they will work with the physicians to provide this service to all women without a family doctor. The Partners in Pregnancy Clinic is located on the 3^rd floor of the Turnbull Medical Building at 170 Simcoe and can be contacted at tel. (705) 741-1191, fax (705) 741-1192, and via email at partners@peterboroughfht.com

July 7th, 2008 – The new Partners in Pregnancy Clinic, located on the 3rd floor of the Turnbull Medical Building, 170 Simcoe Street, Peterborough, officially opened it’s doors earlier today. The clinic, which has been funded by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care through Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough, will be providing care for maternity patients from early pregnancy to 6 weeks postpartum, as well as offering newborn baby care up to six weeks of age. Based on the Family Health Team structure and a patient-centred care model, the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic team will include Drs. Debra Boyce, Barb Gow, Michelle Vilcini and Joan Himann, as well as a Breastfeeding Support Specialist, Advanced Practice Nurse, Registered Nurse, Dietitian and 2 Social Workers, to provide on-site comprehensive maternity care.

“The philosophy of the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic is to provide family-centred care based on respect, collaboration and support, building on the confidence and competence of the mother and her family members at every opportunity,” said Dr. Debra Boyce, Partners in Pregnancy Clinic. “Patients will have a primary physician for their maternity care, but our team approach will ensure that all patients not only meet each physician if they wish to, but that they have consultations with our entire team to address common pregnancy and newborn issues such as lactation support and education, healthy diet and nutrition, infant attachment and much more. We feel that it will offer mothers the very best in maternity and newborn care drawing from the wide range of expertise from our comprehensive team and we are so pleased to provide this service in Peterborough.”

Patients that currently have a family physician in Peterborough can speak to their doctor about referring them to the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic at any time during their pregnancy. Women without a family doctor can self refer by contacting the clinic directly at (705) 741-1191. In addition to the maternity and newborn services, the registered nurses at the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic are certified to perform Pap smears and pelvic exams and they will work with the physicians to provide this service to all women without a family doctor.

Newborn care will also be a key focus of the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic. As part of the Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough objective, all newborn babies without a family physician are to be placed within a Family Health Team and the clinic will support the teams by overseeing the care of infants for up to six weeks of age for those whose mothers are not rostered patients. This will facilitate the early follow up of newborns upon hospital discharge as recommended by the Ontario Coroner’s Office.

“In response to the increasing difficulty of placing unattached newborns within a Family Health Team, we have developed, with dedicated Ministry funding, the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic,” said Bill Casey, Executive Director, Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough. “The Partners in Pregnancy Clinic will support the Family Health Teams in new baby placement as the six week care provided will ensure that not only will the new babies come to the family doctor with records, but will also allow more time for the babies to be rostered with family physicians and ensures that placement is a smooth, seamless transition for patients and health care providers.”

Dr. Don Harterre, Physician Lead, Primary Health Care Services of Peterborough, went on to say that “the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic will also work closely with the referring family physician to ensure the best patient care possible and will be guided by the referring physicians directive so that can determine when their transfer of care for their pregnancy takes place. Patients will most certainly benefit from this new team approach and although they will have a primary physician at the clinic, all four doctors will share a 24-hour call and will be on hand for all deliveries or emergencies for patients. “

The team at the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic includes:

Dr. Debra Boyce,
Dr. Barb Gow
Dr. Michelle Vilcini
Dr. Joan Himann
Patti Fitzgerald, RN/Clinic Co-ordinator
Elly Hartwick, RN/Lactation Support and Education
Neghesti Gebru, RN/Advanced Practice Nurse
Stephanie Vilneff, Social Worker
Tracy Condon, Social Worker
Alyson Werger, Dietitian
Bonnie Copeland, Medical Secretary
Gaylene Rodgrigues, Medical Secretary

In addition to the maternity and newborn services, the registered nurses at the Partners in Pregnancy Clinic are certified to perform Pap smears and pelvic exams and they will work with the physicians to provide this service to women without a family physician. The Partners in Pregnancy Clinic is located on the 3rd floor of the Turnbull Medical Building at 170 Simcoe and can be contacted at tel. (705) 741-1191, fax (705) 741-1192, and via email at partners@peterboroughfht.com

In the first week of July seven family physicians and six allied health professionals from the Peterborough Community Family Health Team will relocate to the new Turnbull Medical Building located in the heart of downtown Peterborough at 170 Simcoe Street. All practitioners can be contacted at their previous telephone numbers. The Turnbull Building’s new use as a medical centre ensures that patients will receive the best care possible through a team approach that brings together family doctors and other allied health practitioners to best meet the needs of the patient.

The following is the complete list of family physicians and Allied Health Practitioners from the Peterborough Community Family Health Team that will be relocating their offices to the Turnbull Building:

Dr. Karen-Lee Eldridge
Dr. Joan Himann
Dr. Ellen Post
Dr. Stephan Ragaz
Dr. Ron VanHoof
Dr. John Beamish
Dr. Robert Elliot
Roseanne VanHoof, Nurse Practitioner
Susan Madison, Nurse Practitioner
Leanne Crump, Nurse Practitioner
Heather Rule, Social Worker
Jan Tkachuk, Social Worker
Cheryl Carl, Registered Dietitian
Mark Fatum, Consulting Pharmacist

The Turnbull Medical Building, owned by Sevenhills Development, is one of Peterborough’s Heritage Buildings, originally constructed in 1888 and has always been an historical anchor for downtown business. The building has been redeveloped to provide the most modern medical facilities for primary health care and the downtown location allows for easy access for people taking public transit as well as ample parking options with the Hunter & Charlotte Street lots, Peterborough Square and on-street parking. The Turnbull Medical Building is located at 170 Simcoe Street, Peterborough, ON, K9H 2H7.