Resident Safety in Patient Care Activities

The Department of Family Medicine recognizes the need for residents to both feel safe and to be safe. The process for patient care as it relates to resident safety is an important one and is explicitly addressed as part of your orientation to the program and as part of your orientation to your family medical centre or community-based practice.
During block time in the family medical centres and community-based practices residents will be required to attend patients both during office hours and during the on-call experience. Settings of patient care include:

1. Office
2. Emergency Room
3. Long-term care institutions
4. Patient home (house, apartment, group home, etc.)

Family medicine residents on family medicine block time will not be required to see patients alone in the clinic or on house calls or in any setting that is not properly supervised. Family medicine preceptors will accompany residents, where resident safety is a concern.
Family medical centers have identified a "safety liaison staff person” with whom you can discuss any issues or concerns related to your safety during patient care activities:

BFMC - Dr. Nancy McKeough SJFMC - Mr. Gerry Bryan SWMHC -Ms. Joyce Walter VFMC - Ms. Joanne Willing

Kitchener - Ms. Sylvia Decker Tavistock - Ms. Betty Blasdell Strathroy - Dr. Philip Vandewalle Windsor - Dr. Dale Ziter

Residents in the community-based practices not listed above should discuss issues or concerns with your staff physician or the community-based coordinator. Residents can also bring any safety concerns to the Postgraduate and/or Assistant Postgraduate Director.

For an urgent situation while on-call the staff physician on-call with you will assist you with any concerns.

Issues of safety not related to patient care activities should be directed to the Postgraduate Director for further consideration.