Bridging the digital divide in health care

Patients of London Health Sciences Centre and St. Joseph’s Health Care London now have easy access to one-on-one help with virtual care appointments through a digital navigator.

London Ontario – Every day across Southwestern Ontario, about 1,000 patients of St. Joseph’s Health Care London (St. Joseph’s) and London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) receive care without leaving their home. These patients are benefitting from the convenience and expanding options of virtual care for numerous programs and services within the two hospital organizations. For those daunted by tuning in virtually, there’s now assistance from a new kind of patient care expert. Sam Ayoko doesn’t have a health-care background but for the patients he works with, he plays an invaluable role in their health care journey with a unique specialty – improving access to virtual care.

Ayoko is a digital navigator who is passionate about helping patients and their caregivers feel more comfortable and confident preparing for their virtual care appointment at LHSC and St. Joseph’s. Patients and their caregivers can book Ayoko, who will ensure they are ready for their remote appointment.

“Our primary role is to bridge the gap between patients and technology,” says Ayoko. “We provide one-on-one assistance prior to their appointment, helping them set up the necessary software, troubleshoot technical issues such as audio and video problems, and ensure a smooth and seamless virtual care experience.”

Mike Drabick refers to Ayoko as “a lifesaver.” For the most part, the 65-year-old is housebound due to various health issues and relies on virtual care to participate in numerous health, wellness, educational and social programs of Third Age Outreach - a community-based program of St. Joseph’s - as well as essential medical appointments with the respirology team at LHSC and the heart failure team at St. Joseph’s. The digital navigator walked him through uploading and using Webex on his computer for quick and easy access to virtual care.

“Virtual care and the support I received has opened my world - to being active and to friends through Third Age Outreach, and to health care I need, without leaving home,” says Drabick. “I’m fairly new to the computer and was having big problems connecting. Now I can simply push the right button and I’m in.”

While virtual care is not new, a growing number of care programs and services now offer this option and an increasing number of patients are taking advantage of these web-based appointments as a convenient and safe way to consult with their care providers. Through the Virtual Care Program of LHSC and St. Joseph’s, patients can meet with their health-care providers using a video conferencing platform from their home, community space, or anywhere the patient can safely and securely connect. This shift, however, has highlighted a digital divide. While many are unfazed by tuning in remotely, some patients lack the necessary skills, assurance or resources to access virtual care effectively.

A key role for Ayoko is providing patient-friendly education that appeals to all ages and tech comfort levels. In addition to technical support, he can also: help patients safely access spaces that have Wi-Fi or devices in their community;

access, fill in and return online documents and forms the hospitals may require; create email addresses that may be needed for virtual care; and offer an opportunity to participate in a practice virtual care appointment.

By ensuring individuals have the knowledge and skills they need to confidently navigate virtual care, Ayoko is playing a crucial role in removing barriers to virtual care and ensuring all patients of LHSC and St. Joseph’s have access to the care they need. 

On St. Joseph’s website and LHSC’s website, read more about the role of the digital navigator for London’s hospitals, how patients and caregivers can access one-on-one support for their virtual care appointment, the personal virtual care experiences of several patients, and more.

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To arrange interviews, please contact: Dahlia Reich, Communication Consultant St. Joseph’s Health Care London Tel: 519 646-6100 ext. 65294, Cell: 519 619-0971 @email.

About St. Joseph’s Health Care London

Renowned for compassionate care, St. Joseph’s Health Care London is a leading academic health care centre in Canada dedicated to helping people live to their fullest by minimizing the effects of injury, disease and disability through excellence in care, teaching and research. Through partnership with Lawson Health Research Institute and our collaborative engagement with other health care and academic partners, St. Joseph’s has become an international leader in the areas of chronic disease management; medical imaging; specialized mental health care; rehabilitation and specialized geriatrics; and surgery. St. Joseph’s operates through a wide range of hospital, clinic and long-term and community-based settings, including: St. Joseph’s Hospital; Parkwood Institute; Mount Hope Centre for Long Term Care; and the Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care. sjhc.london.on.ca.

About London Health Sciences Centre

With roots going back a century and a half, London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) is an award-winning, research-intensive acute tertiary and quaternary teaching hospital, one of only 14 such hospitals in Ontario. LHSC is also home to Children’s Hospital, one of just four acute tertiary care paediatric hospitals in the province. Our unique place in the health system positions us well to inform and advise on provincial, national and international health policy. We are the cornerstone of care for many specialized programs and services in Western Ontario. And, as a major provider of emergency care and through our community hospital mission, we also care for the more than 400,000 people who call London home as well as many in surrounding communities. With Ontario’s health system continuing its transformation, LHSC has an opportunity to inform it and to place itself at the locus of the regionalized health system by virtue of its size, specialized capabilities, research and education capacity and its current regional footprint. LHSC’s formal relationship and strong bond with Western University provide a mechanism for collaboration to enable the delivery of high-quality care through a process of continuous learning and research. At its core, the affiliation is a reciprocal relationship that leverages the learning, teaching and care environments of both Western University and LHSC. LHSC is a 15,000-person strong team of physicians, staff and volunteers – collaborators, innovators and pioneers, meeting the care needs of those we serve and charting a course for the future.