New Mackenzie Health and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre Partnership to Enhance Patient Care

RICHMOND HILL/VAUGHAN, ON, May 8, 2014 /CNW/ - Mackenzie Health and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (Sunnybrook) are expanding and formalizing their collaboration to optimize access to high quality healthcare services for the  people of York Region and beyond.

Through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed in February 2014, the two organizations are working together to establish closer and more integrated collaborative relationships.

The goals of the partnership are to:

• enhance each organization's ability to provide high quality services to the patients they serve;
• reduce duplication and improve health system capacity by using the program strengths of each organization;
• create a corridor of care for referral and repatriation for highly specialized tertiary and quaternary services needed by the residents of York Region; and
• explore opportunities for enhanced research and teaching activities between the organizations.

A number of clinical collaborative initiatives are already in place between the two organizations. The recent MOU will govern the advancement of these existing initiatives, as well as further initiatives.

Clinical services, including a number of existing collaborations, that Mackenzie Health and Sunnybrook agree to explore for the purposes advancing the goals of this MOU include but are not limited to:

Existing Collaborations in Progress	New Areas of Collaboration
Vascular Surgery High Risk Maternal and Newborn Stroke Services	Advanced Cardiac Services Advanced Cancer Services Chronic Kidney Disease Rehabilitation and Complex Continuing Care Seniors' Care

This agreement does not preclude any pre-existing partnerships that Mackenzie Health and Sunnybrook enjoy with other local, provincial, national and international partners.

QUOTES:

"At Mackenzie Health, patients are at the centre of everything we do. Through our formalized partnership with Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, we are now able to create a corridor of care for referral and repatriation for highly specialized services needed by the residents of York Region. This will mean seamless care for people in our communities to further support our vision to create a world-class health experience."

Altaf Stationwala, President and CEO, Mackenzie Health

"Sunnybrook is proud to be partnering with Mackenzie Health. Our organizations share a strong commitment to achieving excellence in patient care and through this agreement both hospitals will be able to improve the coordination of highly specialized and community-based care for people in the York Region. We look forward to our teams working more closely together."

Dr. Barry McLellan, President and CEO, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

"The partnership between Mackenzie Health and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre is a strong commitment between our two organizations. The Board of Directors is confident that the enhanced collaboration will enhance access to tertiary and quaternary care services – such as cardiac and vascular surgery – for our residents and improve health system capacity."

Dina Palozzi, Chair, Board of Directors, Mackenzie Health

"This partnership represents another great step the healthcare system is taking to improve cooperation among institutions and ensure patients receive timely access to the services they need. We are pleased to be working more closely with Mackenzie Health to extend the reach and availability of the world-renowned programs and services Sunnybrook offers."

Blake Goldring, Vice Chair/Chair Elect, Board of Directors,
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

SOURCE: Mackenzie Health

Melina Cormier, Chief, Communications and Public Affairs, Mackenzie Health, Tel: [phone] ext. 7492, E-mail: [email protected]