A way forward.
Year in Review 2021/2022
A message from our Chair and CEO
As we emerge from the crisis of the pandemic – we have learned so much and come so far.
At-a-glance
Dedicated to excellence
There are two sides to last year’s story. The first is all we have accomplished to prepare for our future, the second is our response to COVID-19. While the pandemic continued to dictate the way we operated on a day-to-day basis, we continued to achieve significant milestones demonstrating our commitment to patient care. The past year was pivotal for Oak Valley Health, focusing on how we can support all those who work, volunteer, and receive care at our organization.
In early September, Arthur developed a cough and fever. His condition worsened quickly and he tested positive for COVID-19. “All of a sudden, it hit Arthur like a ton of bricks,” says Jenny, his wife of 19 years.
Our stories
Commitment to community
Our community is growing and peoples' needs are changing. That's why Oak Valley Health is transforming our environment and preparing to meet these growing demands. This means creating new spaces that encourage healing while providing the best experiences for the hundreds of thousands of people who walk through our doors every year.
We are prepared for what the future may hold, and are committed to our vision of “care beyond our walls.” By leveraging partnerships, we can build a seamless and integrated system of care that is best for our patients, their families and our community.
Our stories
COVID-19 timeline
April 1, 2021
The provincial government announced a province-wide “emergency brake” shutdown that came into effect Saturday, April 3, 2021. Ontarians were urged to stay home to the fullest extent possible, except for essential purposes (e.g., groceries, exercise, health care) within their own community.
October 31, 2021
Oak Valley Health, along with 15 Ontario hospitals, implemented mandatory staff and visitor vaccination policy.
November 2021
As part of the Intensive Care Unit Incident Management Structure, Oak Valley Health accepted patients with COVID-19 who were transferred from Saskatchewan.
November 3, 2021
All eligible health care workers at Oak Valley Health were able to receive the third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
November 29, 2021
The COVID-19 Community Vaccination Centre at Cornell Community Centre opened its doors and welcomed youth (aged 5-12) with an inviting space and special activities, separate from our adult clinic.
January 23, 2022
Oak Valley Health establishes a cough, cold and COVID-19 clinic at Markham Stouffville Hospital’s Assessment Centre.
January 31, 2022
Oak Valley Health is the first hospital in York Region to offer Paxlovid, an antiviral drug treating COVID-19 eligible individuals.
To better reflect the care and services, we updated the name of our assessment centre to Clinical Assessment Centre (CAC).
February 11, 2022
On February 11, the Chief Medical Officer of Health lifted Directive #2 that had paused all non-urgent, elective surgeries since January 4, 2022. Oak Valley Health was able to return to 70% of our 2019 surgical and procedural volumes.
March 11, 2022
March 11 marked two years since the World Health Organization declared a pandemic.
In recognition, we asked our team what they learned over the past two years and captured it on video.
March 26, 2022
After 13 months, and as demand for vaccines decreased, the COVID-19 Community Vaccination Centre officially closed its doors.
March 29, 2022
COVID-19 Community Vaccination Centre at Cornell Community Centre Celebrates over 270,000 vaccinations administered.
Awards received in 2021/2022
Meritorious outcomes for surgical patient care in 2020
Oak Valley Health was recognized by the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) as one of 90 hospitals that achieved meritorious outcomes for surgical patient care in 2020. ACS NSQIP is the only nationally validated quality improvement program that measures and enhances the care of surgical patients.
Environmental Services Front Line Award of Excellence
The Canadian Healthcare Housekeepers’ Association recognized Environmental Services staff from across the country for their on-going commitment and contributions to the overall well-being of organizations. Oak Valley Health’s Debbie Conroy, Hospitality Associate at Uxbridge Hospital is one of the only staff in the Greater Toronto area to win this inaugural award.
2021 OCFP Early Years Award
Dr. Emilie Lam was the recipient of the 2021 Ontario College of Family Physicians (OCFP) Early Years Award, an honour that recognizes a family physician in their first 10 years of practice who has demonstrated exemplary dedication to family medicine and primary care in their practice and community. She provides full scope family medicine care at her practice at Markham Medical Centre, in patients’ homes, and at Oak Valley Health's Markham Stouffville Hospital.
College of Family Physicians of Canada Award of Excellence
Dr. Allan Grill, Chief of Family Medicine at Markham Stouffville Hospital, lead physician at Markham Family Health team, received the College of Family Physicians of Canada Award of Excellence, which recognizes family doctors who have made outstanding contributions in one or more areas of family medicine within the past 24 months.
Using Blood Wisely Hospital
Oak Valley Health was designated by Choosing Wisely Canada and Canadian Blood Services as a Using Blood Wisely Hospital. This means that we have processes and quality improvement initiatives in place to promote blood product conservation and improve transfusion practices. This designation reinforces our commitment to responsibly using our finite resources, including the supply of blood.
Accreditation
Every four years our Laboratory Department goes through an in-depth accreditation process, including a self-assessment every two years. After a full week of interviews and documentation submissions, in September 2021, the team received the full four year accreditation by the Institute for Quality Management in Healthcare.
Green Hospital Scorecard Bronze
Oak Valley Health was awarded a Bronze Green Hospital Scorecard. Green Hospital Scorecard (GHS) is a benchmarking and recognition program which aims to reflect hospitals' environmental performance measuring energy conservation, water conservation, waste management and recycling, corporate commitment and pollution prevention.
Nursing Hero Awards – honourable mention
Uthaya Balakumar and Natalie Allison, nurses at Markham Stouffville Hospital’s Palliative and Complex Continuing Care unit received an honourable mention from Hospital News’ Nursing Hero Awards for their determination and innovation in order to bridge the gaps COVID-19 has made in end-of-life care.
Provincial Conversion Rate Award and Eligible Approach Rate Award
Oak Valley Health was presented with two awards by Trillium Gift of Life Network (TGLN). We were given the Provincial Conversion Rate Award that is given to hospitals that meet/exceeded TGLN’s annual target for the number of potential donors who became actual donors. We were also presented with the Eligible Approach Rate Award that recognizes hospitals for demonstrating leading practices by facilitating a donation discussion with eligible patients and families at end of life.
Financials
View the revenues and expenses for 2021/2022.
2020/2021
Last year’s Year in Review can be viewed online.