We've Gone #VirtualFirst in view of COVID-19

Due to the risks of COVID-19, Magenta Health has migrated to a #VirtualFirst approach.

This means all visits will be first conducted entirely by phone or by video. An in-person visit will be arranged if necessary, during this virtual visit. Please do not visit our clinics without a pre-scheduled appointment, even just to ask questions.

To reduce the strain on the health system and our community hospitals and emergency rooms, our physicians have elected to offer appointments 7 days a week. There will also be reserved appointments for urgent issues.

Please use this link to book phone or video appointments with your physician: In some circumstances, this page will direct you:

  • to delay your appointment (e.g. an annual physical)

  • to submit your request a different way (e.g. prescription renewals)

  • to try again later if we’re not quite ready (e.g. to have a virtual first appointment)

If you are experiencing potential COVID-19 symptoms (such as fever, new or worsening cough, sore throat, headache, muscle aches, fatigue, runny nose and joint aches), please see our COVID-19 web page for more information and guidance (including where to get testing, if appropriate):

If you are having difficulty breathing or are experiencing any other emergency symptoms, please visit an emergency department or call 9-1-1- immediately.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. We are doing our best to update our systems and we will be continuing to update our website as new information becomes available.

We're in the midst of switching to a "virtual-first" approach

Due to the risks of COVID-19, we are migrating to a “Virtual-First” approach, effective Monday, March 16th.

Conceptually, this means:

  • appointments that can be done by phone or video, or in writing, will happen that way

  • only appointments that need a physical assessment will happen in person

This decision was made only this morning, so we are in the midst of sorting out many details. It will be an “all hands on deck” weekend for us for sure.

Scheduling of new appointments has been temporarily disabled while we work through the transition.

We do not know how we will be handling already scheduled appointments yet; we will be reaching out to people before the end of the weekend. Please keep an eye on your email if you have an appointment scheduled.

Thank you for your patience and understanding; we’re doing our best and we plan to have further information available by the end of the weekend.

For more information about COVID-19, including whether and how to get tested, please review the information here. Warning - information about our internal processes is currently slightly out of date, in view of our migration to a “Virtual-First” approach.

What You Need to Know about Testing for Cervical Cancer

This blog article brought to you by Dr. Aarti Kapoor, a Magenta Health physician who practices at the Riverside clinic.

A Pap Test is a simple OHIP-covered screening test that can detect cell changes in the cervix caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). HPV infections may lead to cancer before patients feel or see any symptoms.

Unless otherwise directed, the Ontario Cervical Screening Program recommends a test every 3 years for everyone with a cervix between the ages of 21-69 who are/have been sexually active (vaginally, orally, or digitally). As HPV is spread through skin to skin contact during sexual activity, women who have sex with women should follow the same screening regimen as women who have sex with men. The same applies to trans men with a cervix.

During a Pap Test an instrument called a speculum is gently  inserted into a patient’s vagina so their cervix can be seen. Cells are brushed from the surface of the cervix and are sent to a laboratory to be examined under a microscope. Your results will be sent to both your physician, and to the address associated with your OHIP card. Cancer Care Ontario will also send reminders for when your next pap is due. 

Generally, Pap Tests are no longer recommended after the age of 70 if a person has had 3 or more normal tests in the previous 10 years.

More information about cervical cancer screening can be found on the Cancer Care Ontario website.

*To help Magenta Health patients stay up-to-date on their recommended cervical cancer screening and to provide more convenience generally, Dr. Kapoor offers specialised ‘Pap Clinics’ on Friday afternoons for patients of her fellow Magenta Health physicians. She is a Magenta Health family physician who has a special interest in sexual health.

Use your regular booking link to book pap appointments with your Magenta Health physician or if Friday Pap Clinics are more convenient, contact your regular physician for more information.


Proper way to dispose of expired or leftover medications

This blog article brought to you by Milson Chan, pharmacist at the Beach clinic co-located partner, Queen East Medical Pharmacy.

Something that people often wonder about when cleaning out their medicine cabinets or first aid kits is “What do I do with this medication that has expired?”.

So, how do you get rid of your expired or leftover medications?

Do you:

  • Flush them down the toilet?

  • Throw them out with your trash?

  • Burn them during the next barbecue?

  • Grind them up and use them as fertilizers for your lawn?


Surprisingly, none of the above are actually appropriate!

The proper way to get rid of them is to bring them back to any pharmacy that offer medication disposal. Queen East Medical Pharmacy can help you deal with expired or unneeded medications.

Here are some of the things you should do when you want to properly dispose of your medications:

  • Empty all pills into a bag or container, but keep liquids, creams, and inhalers in their original packaging.

  • Remove any personal identification and information.

  • Recycle other packaging

  • Bring the medications back to any pharmacies (such as Queen East Medical Pharmacy) that offer medication disposal

In addition to disposing of expired medications, Queen East Medical Pharmacy also offers:

  • Senior’s discount

  • Methadone Treatment

  • Flu shots

  • Delivery services

  • Compounding of medications

  • Medication reviews

  • Blister packaging

QueenEastMedical.jpg

If you have any questions regarding medications or our services, please feel free to visit us at Queen East Medical Pharmacy, located at 1874 Queen St. East (northwest corner of Queen St. E and Woodbine) or contact us at (ph) 647-313-1948 and (fax) 647-313-1949.

Pharmacy Partners sharing space with Magenta Health

Updates were made to this page in December 2022:

At Magenta Health, we are continually looking for ways to enhance the patient experience whether through increasing efficiencies or by providing other services and often leveraging technology whenever possible.

One of these ways is by having pharmacy partners. our Beaches location we have a pharmacy partner located right in the same space just off the patient waiting area. 

Our pharmacy partners are independent pharmacist owners who provide great care and advice to all who elect to fill their prescriptions there, whether it is a Magenta Health patient or someone from the surrounding communities.

Queen East Medical Pharmacy is located directly in front as you step in the main entrance door of our Beaches Location

Queen East Medical Pharmacy is managed by pharmacist Milson Chan and often the first person you see as you enter the clinic entrance door. Milson provides services such as medication advice, injection administration (seasonal flu shots, travel vaccine, etc.) and can help you save valuable wait time on all your prescriptions.

For more information on store hours and services at Queen East Medical Pharmacy, visit their website or talk to Milson - he will take care of all your medication needs!

Auditing OSCAR EMR for Unsigned Notes

It’s been some time since the last time we shared some OSCAR tips / tricks. Here’s a new one for how to audit OSCAR EMR (v15) for unsigned notes.

Why?

Unsigned notes aren’t necessarily visible to other users and so are a common source of user error, seemingly “lost” notes, potential medical error, confusion, repeat tests, etc…

How?

There’s probably a better way using Report By Templates, but we just use the Query by Example feature usually.

There’s two queries to run:

SELECT LEFT(casemgmt_note.note,100) AS "First 100 chars of note", casemgmt_note.demographic_no,demographic.last_name,demographic.first_name, CONCAT(provider.last_name,",",provider.first_name) AS "Provider",SUM(SIGNED) AS cnt FROM casemgmt_note LEFT JOIN demographic ON casemgmt_note.demographic_no = demographic.demographic_no LEFT JOIN provider ON casemgmt_note.provider_no = provider.provider_no GROUP BY casemgmt_note.uuid HAVING cnt = 0 ORDER BY casemgmt_note.provider_no;

SELECT LEFT(casemgmt_tmpsave.note,100) AS "First 100 chars of note", casemgmt_tmpsave.demographic_no,demographic.last_name,demographic.first_name, CONCAT(provider.last_name,",",provider.first_name) AS "Provider" FROM casemgmt_tmpsave LEFT JOIN demographic ON casemgmt_tmpsave.demographic_no = demographic.demographic_no LEFT JOIN provider ON casemgmt_tmpsave.provider_no = provider.provider_no ORDER BY casemgmt_tmpsave.provider_no;

Our understanding is that the first query reveals notes that have been explicitly saved, but not signed, and the second query reveals notes that have been auto-saved, but not explicitly saved or signed.

The Beaches clinic at 1874 Queen Street East is now open!

We are delighted to announce that our long-awaited Beaches location at the intersection of Queen and Woodbine is open at last!

Three physicians have moved from our existing Riverside location to the Beaches location:

  • Dr. Nicholas Chong

  • Dr. Cristina Musngi

  • Dr. Matthew Cruickshank (will be accepting new patients on a limited basis in September 2018 - register here)

We have an additional physician who is joining the team in September - register here.

The clinic will grow over time to help ensure after-hours care is conveniently available, as well as ensuring patients have access to medical care during physician leave (e.g. vacations / holidays).

To patients that have recently pre-registered with the clinic; thank you for your patience, we will be sending you appointment invitations soon.

If you live in the area and are looking for a family physician, click here to register.

We are delighted to be joining the Beaches community and look forward to meeting all our new neighbours!

 

 

Our Eglinton Location is Growing! Two Full-Time Positions Available!

****EDIT**** Thank you to all of our applicants; we've finished hiring for these positions. 

Magenta Health (www.magentahealth.ca) seeks to hire two additional full-time administrative/medical support staff for our 418 Eglinton Ave. West location.  If you are interested in working at an innovative medical clinic with a heavy emphasis on leveraging technology to improve patient care and access, we'd love to hear from you!

We are a passionate group of doctors dedicated to delivering superior patient care in a warm and welcoming environment. We think great patient care starts with caring support staff, and we’re looking for staff who enjoy interacting with patients and the many families that we work with.

We firmly believe technology and online tools (such as online appointment scheduling and patient messaging) can enhance patient care and streamline the operation of our clinic.  As such, proficiency with computers and technology is a must, and excellent writing and customer service skills will be highly valued.

Medical experience or related education is not at all required. The pay will start at $15/hr during the probationary period and start at $16/hr with benefits thereafter.

Details of the first position:

  • Monday - Thursday from 8:00AM - 4:15PM (approximately)
  • Fridays from 9:00AM - 5:00PM (approximately)
  • Covering the occasional evening or weekend shift at our other clinics may be required. Training will occur at both our 418 Eglinton Ave. W and 625 Queen St. East locations.
  • Responsibilities: 
    • Primary: managing the day-to-day flow of the clinic, basic medical tasks (training to be provided), cleaning and tidying exam rooms, restocking of rooms
    • Secondary: administrative tasks such as calling patients on the phone, answering phone calls, sending out faxes, appointment scheduling and other administrative tasks

Details of the second position:

  • Monday - Thursdays from 12:00PM - 8:15PM (approximately)
  • Fridays from 8:00AM - 4:00PM (approximately)
  • Covering the occasional evening or weekend shift at our other clinics may be required. Training will occur at both our 418 Eglinton Ave. W and 625 Queen St. East locations.
  • Responsibilities: 
    • Primary: administrative tasks such as calling patients on the phone, answering phone calls, sending out faxes, uploading and classifying documents, appointment scheduling and other administrative tasks
    • Secondary: managing the day-to-day flow of the clinic, basic medical tasks (training to be provided), cleaning and tidying exam rooms, restocking of rooms

***

 

Parsing the Ministry of Health's XML file of Rostered Patients

We occasionally use this blog to share clinic administrative tools that we've developed. The latest tool that we've built is a tool to identify discrepancies between the list of rostered patients according to our own EMR (i.e. OSCAR EMR) versus the XML file that is supplied by the Ministry of Health.

As it's just for administrative use, it hasn't been tested extensively. Let us know if you run into any issues!

Striking a Balance - Urgent Medical Issues

An issue that occasionally arises, as it does with every community family doctor's office, is how to meet the needs of patients in respect of urgent medical issues. While not every medical issue is urgent, it's of course understandable that when a pressing matter arises, that it would be best if their own family doctor or a colleague were available at a convenient time.

Read more