Ottawa, ON – HealthCareCAN and the Canadian Patient Safety Institute presented today the 2017 Patient Safety Champion Awards to the Never Event Action Team at North York General Hospital (North York, Ontario). The award recognizes the exemplary leadership and collaboration to champion change and achieve safer care through patient/family engagement.

"We are very proud to promote patient safety in our member organizations and to highlight the exceptional work of the individuals and teams within our member organizations who exemplify best practices and the steadfast commitment to better patient care," said Bill Tholl, president and CEO of HealthCareCAN.

The Team/Organizational Champion Award recognizes a team or organization who, through exemplary patient centred care and patient engagement practices, contributed to a project or initiative that resulted in identifiable positive impact on patient safety outcomes.

"The patient voice is vital to safe care, and the work of North York General Hospital, along with all of our award nominees, set a great example for everyone else to follow. I urge every healthcare organization in Canada to learn from their successes and look at how to improve patient engagement in your facilities," said Chris Power, CEO of the Canadian Patient Safety Institute.

Along with this year’s winners, honorary mentions were given to the Quality, Safety, and Performance Team at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital (Toronto, Ontario) for their work in developing a framework to drive improvement, and to Sean Martin, Director of Collaborative Practice at Peterborough Regional Health Centre for his work in improving safety through enhanced patient partnership and communication.
The 2017 Patient Safety Champion Awards were presented at the National Health Leadership Conference in Vancouver, BC, by HealthCareCAN and the Canadian Patient Safety Institute with support from Patients for Patient Safety Canada.

About HealthCareCAN

HealthCareCAN is the national voice of healthcare organizations and hospitals across Canada. We foster informed and continuous, results-oriented discovery and innovation across the continuum of healthcare. We act with others to enhance the health of the people of Canada; to build the capability for high quality care; and to help ensure value for money in publicly financed, healthcare programs. www.healthcarecan.ca

About Canadian Patient Safety Institute

The Canadian Patient Safety Institute (CPSI) is a not-for-profit organization that exists to raise awareness and facilitate implementation of ideas and best practices to achieve a transformation in patient safety. Funded by Health Canada, CPSI reflects the desire to close the gap between the healthcare we have and the healthcare we deserve. www.patientsafetyinstitute.ca  

For media inquiries, please contact:
Lucie Boileau
Director of Communications, Marketing and Government Relations
HealthCareCAN
lboileau@healthcarecan.ca  
855-236-0213/613-241-8005 x 205
Cell: 613-462-5604

Cecilia Bloxom Senior Director, Strategic Communications
Canadian Patient Safety Institute
cbloxom@cpsi-icsp.ca  
780-498-7255/866-421-6933 x 7255
Cell: 780-700-8642