Ontario Long-Term Care Medication Safety Technology Program

All LTC homes that have a direct funding agreement with the Ministry are eligible and there is no need to apply for the MST program.

Eligible LTC homes receive funding based on the number of licensed beds.

• Year 1 (2021-2022): $0.72 in per diem or $16,667, whichever is greater
• Years 2 and 3 (2022-2024): $0.98 in per diem or $16,667, whichever is greater

An average-size home with approximately 130 beds would receive $46,501 in funding in 2022/23.

Eligible expenditures include cost of acquiring the technology, as well as costs associated with implementation and change management support.

Funding is applicable to technology that supports:

• The secure and accurate electronic transmission and handling of prescription information
• The optimization of medication regimes for LTC home residents, including the identification of opportunities for deprescribing and decision support at the point of prescribing
• The strengthening of the security of the drug supply
• The accurate administration of medication
• The oversight and monitoring of the medication use process
• The improved functioning of the medication management system in the LTC home

LTC homes can choose from a list of the five types of eligible technologies to implement:

• Computerized Prescriber Order Entry (CPOE) or electronic prescribing (ePrescribing)
• Electronic medication administration record (eMAR)
• Machine-Readable Coding for Medication Administration (e.g. bar code medication administration)
• Automated Dispensing Cabinet (ADC)
• Electronic Clinical Decision Support System (eCDSS)

An application is not necessary if your organization wishes to pursue the purchase and implementation of the five afore-mentioned technologies. If, based on your self-assessment results, your organization decides to pursue a technology not listed above, an application is required. The application will be reviewed by The Ministry against the goals of the MST program.

Funding must be used to acquire a technology that has not been in place prior to April 1 of each funding year. However, there are two exceptions:

• Technology was already in place, but additional functionality is added
• Funding can also be used to cover costs associated with ongoing use and maintenance of automated dispensing cabinets that were installed prior to April 1 of each funding year

STEP 1: Take the Medication Management Self-Assessment for Long-Term Care (MSSA-LTC) provided by ISMP Canada. This assessment will require the collaboration and careful consideration of your internal stakeholder and care team members and is estimated to take approximately 2 to 3 hours to complete.
The ISMP Canada site states this self-assessment is intended to identify areas of focus for quality improvement and enhancement of medication practices, and individual LTC homes/facilities should not expect to score highly in all areas. The results of the self-assessment will help you understand which technologies will best support your organization as you pursue safe medication practices.

ISMP Canada requires LTC homes complete this self-assessment for each year of the program in which they wish to participate. The deadline to complete and submit the MSSA for funding year 2 is September 30, 2022.

STEP 2: Once technology has been implemented, LTC homes are required to report to The Ministry expenditures for the April-to-December and January-to-March periods in their respective calendar years. The report should detail how funding is, or will be, implemented during that funding year.

The deadline to submit a funding report for funding year 2 is September 30, 2022.

Click here to view the reporting template.

To find more information about reporting, visit LTChomes.net.

The MST funding is part of a three-year program (2021 – 2024).

• Year 1 – April 1, 2021 through March 31, 2022
• Year 2 – April 1, 2022 through March 31, 2023
• Year 3 – April 1, 2023 through March 31, 2024

Closed-loop medication management is a fully electronic, integrated and automated method of tracking, managing, and documenting medication prescribing and dispensing. In this process, accuracy and safety are primary objectives.

There should be a seamless flow of both resident and medication information between the various technologies. Standalone technologies that do not transmit information regarding both resident and medication do not fall under the category of close-loop medication management.

CPOE is the electronic method by which clinicians and care team members enter, send, and manage medical orders in inpatient, long-term care, and ambulatory settings.

Click here and fill out the request form to speak with a specialist about how you can benefit from the Ontario MST program.