Across Canada, there is no shortage of good ideas, pilot projects or case studies that showcase excellence in care. Evidence shows that health care innovators share six key levers that drive continuous improvement, lead to excellence in care, and provide a practical lens for policy and system design.
Local Innovations Making a Difference
In Huntsville, Ontario, a creative community partnership co-located a primary care clinic with the local library. Led by a nurse practitioner, the team cares for more than 1,600 people. Three out of four clients say it helped them avoid an emergency department visit.
Similarly, in Neil's Harbour, Nova Scotia, a primary care team added a nurse prescriber to improve same and next-day access. Since implementation, a quarter of patients with less urgent needs have been redirected from the emergency department to primary care.
Leadership and Staff Well-being
In Edmonton, the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital focused on adopting relationship-centred leadership approaches. Within three months, patients' sense of being heard increased by 32 per cent, while negative staff sentiment dropped from 40 per cent to just two per cent.
Virtual Support in Remote Communities
In Nunavut's most remote communities, care is provided through nursing stations. The problem: staff were effectively on call around the clock, fueling burnout and turnover. When registered nurses familiar with the communities started providing after-hours support virtually, it reduced strain on frontline staff, improved retention and enhanced patient safety.
Six Key Levers for Improvement
High-performing health systems put people at the centre, valuing both those who receive care and those who deliver it. Evidence shows that they share six key levers that drive continuous improvement, lead to excellence in care, and provide a practical lens for policy and system design. Specifically, they:
- Partner meaningfully with patients, caregivers and communities;
- Engage health workers and teams;
- Equitably address the needs of people and communities;
- Enable policies and structures that make improvement easier;
- Strengthen organizational and system capacities;
- Use timely and relevant evidence.
Without replicating these conditions systematically, innovation can stall or lead to pilot fatigue. But sharing and scaling solutions is possible. These changemakers show what health care needs across Canada.
