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Bertram says that making the most of the new federal mental health transfer will require strong accountability frameworks and a spirit of learning.
Judging from my experience attempting to promote uptake of short-term acute mental health home care ( SAMHH) , these are unlikely to happen.
SAMHH is an even more transformative innovation shared by the UK and Australian mental health systems , than provision of psychotherapy. All psychiatric patients destined for admission are diverted to home treatment wherever possible, plus suitable inpatients are discharged early to home treatment ( 1)
In 1989 I founded Canada's first SAMHH service--Hazelglen--at Kitchener's Grand River Hospital.
After SAMHH was recommended in the Romanow report ( 2) in 2002 and after it was included as a priority in the 2004 Health Accord, I tried to engage the Ontario Ministry of Health to promote its uptake in 2006
By then, Hazelglen had proven itself an effective alternative to admission over 17 years and my book on home treatment had just been published to excellent reviews ( 1)
The local MPP tried unsuccessfully for months to arrange a meeting with someone in the Ministry
My letters to the Ministry went unanswered.
Requests to the local federal MP for a meeting with the federal department of health went unanswered
I could not find an entry point into the healthcare system for this innovative idea--and--even stranger, no one else knew of one.
This is a classic example of " Medicare's arrested development " as described in the 2015 report of the Advisory Panel on Healthcare Innovation ( 3) , and provides support for their recommendation to create both a fund and an agency to drive healthcare innovation forward in Canada
References
1 Heath, David S. Home Treatment for Acute Mental Disorders :An Alternative to Hospitalization. Routledge. New York ( 2005)
2 Romanow, R J. Chapter 8 Home Care: The Next Essential Service . In : Building on Values: The future of health care in Canada--the final report. Saskatoon: Commission on the Future of Healthcare in Canada: 2002
3 Report of the Advisory Panel on Healthcare Innovation Unleashing Innovation: Excellent Healthcare for Canada. Ottawa: Minister of Health: 2015