Patient Relations Guidance Tools for Quality Improvement

The following guides provide more detail on the steps that the hospital, community care and long-term care sector can adopt to improve their patient relations processes.

Patient Relations guide for hospitals

Striving for excellence in patient relations processes in Ontario’s hospitals

An at-a-glance review of patient relations best practices, this guidance document provides a step-by-step approach to make improvements in patient relations. It also aligns with the requirements of regulations by the government to help standardize patient and caregiver feedback in hospital improvement processes. It includes examples of patient relations innovations and recommendations from Ontario and from other jurisdictions.

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Health care professional explaining something to his patient

Engaging Patients and Caregivers about your patient relations process: A guide for hospitals

This guide details how Ontario’s hospitals can engage patients, caregivers and their family members to develop effective and inclusive patient relations processes.

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Doctor asking his patient some questions

A Guide to Improving Complaints Processes in Long-Term Care Homes

This guide details how long-term care homes in Ontario can use a quality improvement approach to improve their complaints processes.

Patient in a wheelchair gets assistance from her health care professional

A Guide to Improving Complaints Processes in the Home and Community Care Sector

This guide details how Ontario’s 14 local health integration network home and community care services can use a quality improvement approach to improve their complaints processes.

Patient is doing exercises with his health care professional

Patient Relations and Quality Improvement Plans

Patient relations indicators were added to the Quality Improvement Plans as part of the 2018/19 priorities. To find out more, review the Quality Improvement Plan annual planning materials and technical specifications.

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Survey Findings of Patient Relations practices in Ontario

Learn about a multi-sector survey commissioned by Health Quality Ontario in fall 2015 to better understand how the hospital, community care and long-term care sectors handle patient complaints.