HIROC partnerships make headlines in 2008
Insurance reciprocal continues mission of partnering to create the safest healthcare system
Friday December 19, 2008 -- Jason Thompson
At the Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada’s (HIROC’s) 2008 annual general meeting and risk management conference, CEO Peter Flattery stated that HIROC’s success is not the result of a single strategy, but the combined efforts of hundreds delivering their vision — partnering to create the safest healthcare system.

“For HIROC, that commitment to partnership remains as vital today as it was 20 years ago,” Flattery said at the AGM in April.

“Throughout its history, HIROC has been defined in part by the quality of its relationships with subscribers, legal advisers, government and educational organizations to name a few.”

That vision has continued to gain momentum throughout the past year as HIROC partnered with organizations from across the country to improve patient safety and risk management.

Beginning early in 2008, and continuing through the year, HIROC and the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA), partnered on a number of events and initiatives to improve healthcare safety.

Anthony Fuchs, HIROC’s director of marketing and communication, said it isn’t often a day goes by where he isn’t involved in discussions with OHA personnel.

“HIROC is a strong supporter and sponsor of many OHA professional development and education sessions and participates as a regular exhibitor and sponsor at OHA HealthAchieve conferences and their regional events,” says Fuchs, adding HIROC’s relationship with the OHA is “vital.”

2008 also saw an extension of the formal relationship between HIROC and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices Canada (ISMP Canada).

Because HIROC and ISMP Canada share the same philosophy and vision of patient safety, Flattery told Axiom News that it makes sense for the two organizations to partner for the benefit of healthcare organizations and patients.

“We see ISMP as a key partner in helping us move towards our vision of creating the safest healthcare system. Formalizing the relationship is a key to that and we look forward to how we can make this happen,” Flattery said.

Sylvia Hyland, vice-president of ISMP Canada, agrees that partnership is important for the development of safe healthcare systems.

“ISMP Canada is very pleased about the new strategic partnership with HIROC,” Hyland said. “HIROC is a respected leader in providing healthcare insurance and risk management programs.”

A major initiative stemming from the announcement is a collaborative review of medication related claim data with the aim of improving the content and level of information received.

This will draw upon expertise from both organizations and help optimize learning in the development of preventative strategies.

Throughout the course of the year, HIROC’s partnership with the Canadian Patient Safety Institute (CPSI) has also been a constant — including support for Canadian Patient Safety Week and sponsorship of the Safer Healthcare Now (SHN) campaign as well as a number of other events and initiatives.

— More year in review articles to come

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