Sinai Health System receives award for governance at Health Achieve

There’s no step-by-step instruction manual for amalgamating two health-care organizations. It’s a complex process. In order to achieve goals of delivering better, more integrated care, leaders have to quickly establish a strong foundation in new governance and organizational structures, reporting and metrics, all while taking into account the unique culture, values, structure and strengths of each organization.

The successful amalgamation of our organizations in 2015 was recognized this fall with Sinai Health System being awarded a Certificate of Honorary Commendation at this year’s Health Achieve Conference, the Ontario Hospital Association’s signature event. Sinai Health’s Board of Directors and executive leaders were recognized for the vision and oversight that successfully brought together Bridgepoint Active Healthcare, the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital and Circle of Care. Only two organizations from across Ontario are selected to receive the governance awards each year.

“This is a truly great result and well-deserved recognition for the vision, foresight and oversight of our board and executive leadership,” said Brent Belzberg, Board Chair, Sinai Health System. “Sinai Health is well-poised to serve as an exemplar for integrated care delivery.”

The OHA highlighted some of the ways amalgamation has resulted in better, more integrated care for our patients, including direct admissions to Bridgepoint from Mount Sinai Hospital’s Emergency Department; the system-wide hip fracture pathway; and faster turn-around time for electro-cardiogram (ECG) test results for Bridgepoint patients. The creation of an Office of Integration and Transformation was cited as a novel governance approach that led to a successful implementation of integration.