On December 3, Crosstown staff and medical staff used their shift change as an opportunity to congregate in the clinic waiting room and discuss important questions about Providence’s future. The conversation was lively and the comments exemplified why Crosstown staff are the very best at what they do: they are always advocating for their patients, and know the tools they need more of to deliver the best treatment to their patients.
Here are some* of the ideas and comments that Crosstown staff added to our pursuit of world class.
- Why do we work here? Because it’s a necessary area – as staff we have a feeling that we need to be here. We have to be. If not us, who? The patients need us.
- We’re limited by funding by the number of people we serve; we currently serve 130 – but have a 500-person waiting list. We could be serving 4x the number of people.
- Substance use is a health problem and can be managed and is part of the continuing of care. We manage diabetes with insulin; we can manage substance use with medication.
- It would be great to be able to offer primary care to our patients, in addition to the treatment that we offer here.
- What’s needed for us to be world-class? A new facility that is purpose-built and would serve the expansion of the program. The current location is ideal — a renovation, maybe, or a new location but Crosstown needs to stay in this neighbourhood.
- Develop closer partnerships with housing, Vancouver Police Department, overdose prevention sites, drug court, InSite, etc.
- Listen to staff in order to stay innovative.
- We need to provide a platform for greatness – allow people to grow and flourish.
- There needs to be a policy mandating everyone to take trauma-informed care — security, medical staff, clinical staff. Everyone.
- As of May 19, 2018, Health Canada has given us permission to transport and offer diacetylmorphine (prescription heroin) to all clients so, for example, a surgery patient can have medication delivered to them. We would like diacetylmorphine to be accessible to clients who need it in all health authorities.
- Two years ago, no one here had employment. Now, it’s very common for our patients to be employed. We’re scheduling appointments around their work. In 7 years, these are the stories we’ll be telling more of – we’re seeing this as our patients’ future now.
- Crosstown saves lives. So we need more Crosstown.
* Please note: this is a high-level summary; all sentiments discussed were fully captured by the table facilitators!
Do you have ideas that you’d like to contribute to our pursuit of world class? Tell us online! https://bloomprovidencehealthcare.org on Bloom adds your voice to this important conversation, and enters your name in a draw to win some excellent prizes. See what’s up for grabs: https://bloomprovidencehealthcare.org/story-page-test/news_feed/add-your-voice-win-a-prize
