Photo caption: (left to right) ALIGN team members, Natalie Walters, Sherri Cope and Maureen Bloskie of Renfrew Victoria Hospital and St. Francis Memorial Hospital.
Although Renfrew Victoria Hospital (RVH) and St. Francis Memorial Hospital (SFMH) have shared a CEO since 1998, recent years have seen a significant expansion of integration, including a fully integrated senior leadership team and numerous shared roles. This model promotes efficiency, facilitates the sharing of best practices, and creates enhanced opportunities for staff career growth, leadership development, and mobility across both organizations.
By working as a coordinated system rather than two independent organizations, both hospitals are better positioned to maximize resources, support staff, and improve patient outcomes while maintaining local access to care.
Strategic Value for Communities
A notable example of the value of integration is the ALIGN Program (Aging at Home through Linked, Integrated, and Guided Networked Care- A Collaborative Model) which is set to launch September 2026 at RVH and SFMH. ALIGN exemplifies the value of an integrated model of care by demonstrating how coordinated planning and shared clinical leadership across RVH and SFMH improve outcomes for patients and families.
ALIGN brings together multidisciplinary teams and leadership from across both organizations to assess patient needs, support timely care planning, and ensure patients receive the most appropriate level of care at the right time and in the right setting. Through this collaborative approach, patients benefit from more coordinated, efficient, and patient-centred care, while the healthcare system benefits from improved resource utilization, enhanced patient flow, and reduced fragmentation of services. Key indicators for success include reductions in Alternate Level of Care (ALC) days, shorter lengths of stay (LOS), and timely transitions from hospital back to the community.
Through this integrated approach, patients who may require additional supports, rehabilitation, transitional care, or community services are identified earlier and connected more seamlessly to the resources they need. Rather than navigating care transitions between organizations independently, patients benefit from coordinated planning, shared expertise, and streamlined communication among care providers across both hospital sites.
The program goals include strengthened collaboration between teams, improved patient flow, reduced delays in transitions of care, and enhanced the ability of clinicians to proactively plan for patients with complex needs. By leveraging shared leadership, standardized processes, and collective clinical expertise, ALIGN enables both organizations to work as a unified system focused on achieving the best possible outcomes for patients.
For rural communities, where resources are often limited and health care needs continue to grow in complexity, ALIGN demonstrates the power of integration to maximize available expertise and capacity. The program exemplifies how RVH and SFMH can accomplish more together than either organization could independently, creating a more coordinated, patient-centred health care experience while preserving access to high-quality care close to home.
There are many benefits realized through the integrated model including:
Improved Access to Care
- Shared clinical and leadership resources help ensure service continuity across both sites.
- Patients benefit from more consistent access to specialized services and expertise.
- Coordination supports timely transitions in care and reduces barriers for patients receiving services in the county.
Enhanced Quality and Patient Safety
- Standardized clinical practices, policies, and evidence-based care approaches promote consistent quality.
- Shared quality improvement initiatives strengthen accountability and patient outcomes.
- Collaboration enables identification and spread of leading practices more rapidly across both organizations.
Improved Patient Experience
- Patients experience greater continuity of care through coordinated planning and communication.
- Care decisions are supported by a broader network of healthcare professionals and expertise.
- The model supports local care whenever possible while facilitating seamless access to services across both organizations when needed.
Workforce Sustainability
- The integrated model supports recruitment and retention by offering broader professional opportunities.
- Shared leadership promotes efficiency by enabling the transfer of best practices and successful initiatives between organizations.
- An integrated model creates greater opportunities for career advancement, professional development, and leadership experience across two organizations.
Operational Efficiency and Stewardship
- Shared leadership and corporate services reduce duplication and support efficient use of resources.
- Joint purchasing, planning, and program development create economies of scale.
- Resources can be allocated strategically based on community needs across the region.
Stronger Clinical Programs
- Integrated planning supports the sustainability of specialized programs that may be difficult for a single small hospital to maintain independently.
- Clinical expertise can be leveraged across sites to strengthen patient care and support best practices.
- Programs are better positioned to respond to emerging health care needs and system priorities.