Long-Term Ventilation Team Excels in France
Long-Term Ventilation Team Excels in France
From March 6 to 9, 2025, members of the Respiratory Therapy team at UHN’s West Park, who are a part of the Provincial Long-Term Ventilation Strategy (PLTVS) team, presented at the 17th International Conference on Home Mechanical Ventilation in Lyon, France.
Funded by the Ministry of Health, the PLTVS addresses critical challenges, such as how to safely transition patients on long-term ventilation from the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) to more appropriate care settings, freeing up beds for those who need them most.
Following a call for abstracts, the PLTVS team shared two posters: “Stakeholder Co-design of a Long-Term Ventilation Portal” and “An Integrated Model of Care for Long-Term Ventilation in Ontario.” They also conducted a workshop on creating a certificate program for healthcare workers managing long-term ventilation patients in Ontario.
The team’s participation in the conference helped foster valuable networking opportunities and sparked significant interest in the workshop curriculum. Their participation also attracted potential financial support and sparked ideas for further research collaboration.
This international opportunity showcases the remarkable work initiated during the three-year pilot of the PLTV, which is led by West Park team members, in collaboration with representatives from London Health Sciences, Michael Garron Hospital, and Critical Care Services Ontario.
Now permanently funded, the PLTVS actively improves the quality of life for patients requiring long-term ventilation. The impact of this strategy is contributing to freeing up ICU beds, providing specialized care closer to home, reducing emergency department visits, and coordinating resources for better patient care.
