EPIC Learning Health System Steering Committee

The EPIC Learning Health System Steering Committee is a member-led committee that provides guidance for the work of our learning health system (LHS). Its primary focus is to support meaningful quality improvement activities. The committee works closely with the Research Advisory Council to choose research based on their potential to result in more equitable care. It  also supports clinical engagement in learning and quality improvement through a practice-based learning network (PBLN).

Drawing from the Model of Health and Wellbeing and our Evaluation Framework, the EPIC LHS steering committee develops strategies, questions, and indicators for measuring the effectiveness of the LHS.  EPIC promotes and guides the production of tailored reports and dashboard content, and provides high-level guidance for quality improvement work. For 2020-21, all aspects of the committee’s work plan have been revisited so that its activities relate more directly to learning and quality improvement (see box: “EPIC in Action”).

The Steering Committee is supported by the Alliance’s Director of Research and Evaluation, Dr. Jennifer Rayner. Dr. Rayner has a PhD in epidemiology from Western University and has a long history of working in the community primary healthcare sector. Prior to working for the Alliance, she was a data analyst at London Intercommunity Health Centre for 13 years and provided decision support to Ontario CHCs for 8 years.

#EPIC LHS in Action EPIC’s 2020-2021 work plan is focused on support for quality improvement and population needs-based planning. Here are a few examples: To improve completeness of relevant equity data, EPIC will develop a centre-specific data-quality dashboard and provide this data every other month to your organization. To enhance capacity for local quality improvement, EPIC will develop a QI training strategy for Alliance members in collaboration with partners such as the Institute for Health Improvement, the Canadian College of Family Physicians, or other regulatory colleges. To support population health planning in Ontario Health Teams, EPIC will create a report on mental health care provided to unattached clients and advocate for population data to include social determinants of health. To improve access to care, EPIC will provide targeted panel-size quality improvement support, including helping to identify explanatory measures, for centres whose current panel size is below 70% of target. To foster a culture of curiosity and inquiry that leads to new knowledge, EPIC will support and provide guidance to the Alliance’s Practice-Based Learning Network (PBLN).