Simplexity

In the past, I’ve written a good deal about my love of reading. Books provide me with two of the things I’ve come to cherish: a chance to slow down, while keeping my mind open to new opportunities for learning.

Lately, my shelves have mostly been lined with texts that focus on what’s been called “the fourth industrial revolution”—in other words, digital health, artificial intelligence and the internet of things. What stands out is one particular book that examines this latest revolution from the perspective of health care, Eric Topol’s Deep Medicine.

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As an avid reader, I love a good story, especially when it has to do with innovation and new beginnings.

Last year, I read an interesting tale of horses in London, England, in the 1800s. At the time, this city was the most populated in the world, with transportation based primarily on horses. As anyone who has recently walked around the Old Port of Montreal knows, horses have a very particular drawback: manure.

With 50,000 horses in London in 1894, newspapers were projecting that if no solution could be found, within 50 years the city would be nine feet deep in manure. The problem was not specific to London, but was also experienced in cities like New York, where the horses numbered at least 100,000.

In 1898, at the first International Urban Planning meeting, a central topic of conversation was, how do we fix our manure problem? When the meeting adjourned, the consensus was that no solution existed.

Enter Henry Ford, who devised a process of building motor cars at affordable prices. Electric trams and motor buses soon appeared on the streets, replacing horse-drawn buses. By 1912, the once seemingly insurmountable problem of manure had been resolved, as motorized vehicles became the main source of transportation.

In the face of problems that seem to have no apparent solution, the great horse crisis of 1894 serves as an inspiration against despair. Often, necessity truly is the mother of invention—and the solution is far more unexpected than could ever be imagined.

If we apply this story to our current situation at the gateway of connected health, it’s only natural for us to ask ourselves, why implement it now? The answer is far simpler than we might initially have thought.

From deciphering the genome to the arrival of new digital innovators and the digitization of almost everything in our day-to-day lives, we risk that health care will be left behind in this revolution, if we don’t leap into the digital world. That would be a far scarier fate than whatever lies ahead of us.

People are now living longer and are being diagnosed with more complex issues, but the technology to treat and care for our healthcare users has not kept pace to meet these growing challenges. If a solution is not found, we risk inadvertently reliving the horse-related conundrum of an earlier century!

And so I ask those who are fearful of the necessary changes that lie ahead, if not now, when?

“It’s good to be different” is the phrase that we, as parents, find ourselves repeating again and again to our children, as they grow and take on interests that others don’t necessarily share.

This is a useful means of maintaining a sensible perspective, but it’s not an approach that should be limited solely to child-rearing. Indeed, being “different” – in the best sense of the word – has often given rise to some of the most significant and influential changes in history.

Take, for instance, the invention of the light bulb. When Henry Woodward and, later, Thomas Edison were developing the basis for the way we light our homes and cities today, the rest of the world was content simply to use candles. By working against the grain, those originators brought into existence a device that we could not imagine living without today. Just as they challenged the conventional wisdom of their era, our CIUSSS is now striving to do the same with health care.

Last December, I pledged that over the coming 12 to 18 months, we would make noticeable changes in the way we conduct business. Now, four months in, the underpinnings of this trans-formation are taking shape: In March, our CIUSSS hired a digital health expert on a research contract. With a strong background in government policy and digital health know-how, he will collaborate with teams throughout the network to best determine how we can improve the delivery of care, no matter where the patient may be – whether in a healthcare facility, at home or in some other type of accommodation.

On a practical basis, this will require us to review, among other things, the management of medical files, the tools that healthcare professionals use to log into medical information, and even how patients navigate our website in their search for information.

There’s still a lot of work to be done, and we don’t yet have all of the answers. But here’s one statement I can make with complete confidence: It’s going to be different. This is a lesson that most children grow to appreciate, often after a good deal of effort. And now it’s our turn to move forward by recapturing and taking full advantage of that valuable, child-like perspective.

We’ve all heard the old adage, “You’re only as good as your word.”

Well, late last year, in discussions with staff, senior leaders and the Board of Directors, I explained that in the next 12 to 18 months, we as a CIUSSS will be focusing on how we can effectively use digital solutions to change the way we deliver care. The goal is to provide care wherever the patient is and in so doing, to increase the user experience and eliminate some of the problems that we face every day.

In January, accompanied by senior members of our Informatics and Innovation teams, I boarded a plane for Israel to meet with some of the country’s leading minds and learn from them how we can adapt and implement new processes. The 10-day visit to healthcare facilities throughout the country was nothing short of inspiring.

Taking a step back, it’s important once again to remember that we are not starting from zero when it comes to digital health. The 8-1-1 service that our CIUSSS offers is a prime example of using technology to better serve our users. Addressing potential patients’ problems by phone leads to fewer unnecessary visits to the Emergency Department, while helping to direct patients to the proper healthcare outlet.

But we don’t have to stop there. Part of developing this digital health narrative involves taking a look at what we’re already doing with technology, and then seeing how we can do it more effectively. It won’t always be easy, but the end result will be worth it for our users and staff alike. On that, you have my word.

Lawrence