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Creating the IHSP-2

A clear and thoughtful process

CEO-Break

Developing the 2010 - 2013 Integrated Health Service Plan involved a clear and analytical process whereby the Toronto Central LHIN examined the latest evidence and data and tapped into the insights and experiences of health service providers, health professionals, and a diversity of consumers and community members. More than 2,000 individuals participated in the engagement sessions and provided input into the IHSP-2.

The creation of this Plan began with four key assumptions:

  • The Toronto Central LHIN has a clear vision and a great starting point. Extensive research, consultations and analyses of the LHIN’s needs and resources have enabled it to crystallize a long-term vision for health care in the Toronto Central LHIN that reflects the province’s vision of a stronger health system for all Ontarians. The LHIN is fortunate to have a strong foundation to build on, including excellent programs and renowned centres of excellence, leading-edge research and teaching, and a wealth of talent, experience and commitment.
  • There are urgent challenges that need to be addressed now. Chronic disease now accounts for the large majority of the LHIN’s health care spending, with four per cent of patients who have chronic and/or complex diseases accounting for 90 per cent of the LHIN’s health care expenses. Inequities in access to care continue to persist, and patients and their families are not always served well by the system, which can sometimes feel disorganized, impersonal and fragmented. At the same time, the global economic crisis has significantly weakened Ontario’s economy and will intensify pressures on health care funding in the Toronto Central LHIN over the next three years.
  • A system-level solution is needed. One of the greatest opportunities for strengthening services across the health care continuum for everyone, particularly individuals with the most complex and chronic needs, is to increase alignment and integration among health service providers. This will require all health service providers and professionals to be fully committed to working together to achieve better health outcomes for the population and to openly sharing information about achieved outcomes. This will improve quality, produce better health results, and help ensure the health care system is affordable and sustainable.
  • Focus is needed to achieve results. The most effective way to transform a large and complex health system is by concentrating efforts on a select number of priorities. To get the most out of this approach, the LHIN needs to identify priorities that will have a broader impact on the system and lead to other positive changes.

Advancing the IHSP-2 with the balanced scorecard

The LHIN adopted a “balanced scorecard” system as its approach to design, communicate, implement and monitor execution of the Integrated Health Service Plan. The balanced scorecard is a powerful tool for articulating long-term health system goals, defining priorities for action, and measuring results. Since many health service providers already use a balanced scorecard, it offers an increasingly familiar language about what needs to be accomplished in the Toronto Central LHIN.

See Toronto Central LHIN’s strategy map created using the balanced scorecard approach.