"I would say the most meaningful part of AIM has been the patient response. I get very positive feedback from patients regarding their ability to get an appointment in a timely fashion, and to been seen in the clinic more or less on time. I had the son of an elderly patient thank me for being on time and easy to access as it was a great help to him and his father." Dr. Rick Neuls
Allin Clinic,
Edmonton, AB
"I have learned to look at my practice as a business as well - and to look at ways of improving the access to my business." Dr. Dave Stewart
Family Medical Clinic, Lethbridge, AB
Ernie Shuster
Shuster Clinic, Edmonton
"Health care is a large and complex system and change may often seem overwhelming. AIM provides the family physician office team with a step-by-step approach that can result in significant change for the health care team and system, but most importantly improves the health of our patients." Sheri Fielding, Nurse Practitioner
Heritage Medical Clinic, Edmonton, AB
"Some of the work that physicians are currently doing could be done by someone else. When teams involving physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other medical professionals work together and people can see their doctor sooner, they receive better comprehensive care and delays for and during appointments are reduced."
Dr. Janet Craig
Glenora Medical Clinic, Edmonton, AB
"Our clinic is more efficient than it has ever been thanks to the great measurement tools and support, but the big winner is that we are truly a "team" now. Morale is at an all time high." Roxanne Bergheim, Clinic Manager
St. Paul Medical Clinic, St. Paul, AB
"My patients now have better access to see me; my delay measures have been cut in half and that is the same as the general clinic trend since we've been implementing these strategies."
Dr. Rob Wedel
Associate Medical Centre, Taber, AB
"I came in as a skeptic and now I recommend this process to other skeptics." Dr. Wes Steed
Associate Medical Centre, Taber, AB
I recently had the opportunity to interview a long-time (more than 20 year) patient of Dr. Colliton’s at Heritage Clinic. Her previous experience in booking an appointment with Dr. Colliton was that for a basic/routine matter, she would “be lucky to get an appointment in a few days,” and it was usually more likely the following week. Getting an appointment for an annual periodic health exam always meant a wait of several months.
She recently called the clinic to make an appointment for her annual exam. She called at 9:10 a.m. and was offered an appointment at 10:30 the same day. When asked for her reaction, she indicated she was “shocked, surprised and pleased!” Although it had taken her several tries to get through on the phone, the recorded message explained the changes that were taking place re: booking appointments and the information was quite clear. She also mentioned that getting through on the phone at 9:00 a.m. was not any different than it had been in the past, so it wasn’t an inconvenience for her.
She feels she will be more likely to have an annual exam with the new system, since she doesn’t have to book so far ahead. In the past, when she had to book several months ahead, she found that when the appointment day came, it wasn’t a convenient time for her so she often had to cancel, or worse, would forget about the appointment and therefore not show up.
Overall, she is pleased with what she has seen of the changes so far, and is encouraged to know she will be able to get an appointment with Dr. Colliton when she needs to be seen. Heritage Clinic, Edmonton, AB
Tobias Gelber
Pincher Creek Medical Clinic, Pincher Creek
Dr. Paul Pashniak
Connie Burkart, Patient Care Manager
Colposcopy Clinic