ONTARIO-The Ontario government says it is connecting more than 73,000 people to primary care teams in Eastern Ontario with a $22 million investment. This includes a new Community Health Centre in Peterborough.
“Our government is making record investments to ensure everyone who wants to have a primary care provider can connect to one,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “While there is more work to do, giving tens of thousands of more people in the region the opportunity to connect to primary care brings us that much closer to this goal.”
The province claims it currently leads the country with 90 per cent of people connected to a regular health care provider. As a next step to close the gap for those not connected to primary care in Eastern Ontario, the province is supporting nine different interprofessional primary care initiatives. These will connect more than 73,000 Ontarians with primary care teams and provide services including:
- A new Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic in Ottawa will provide comprehensive, interprofessional primary care for people living with mental health and addiction challenges.
- A new Family Health Team in Renfrew County will focus on providing mental health and addictions support, as well as helping seniors manage chronic diseases.
- A new Family Health Team in Lanark County that will focus on supporting vulnerable people – particularly seniors who are currently without a primary care provider.
- An expanded Family Health Team in Brockville will now be able to offer more primary care services, seven days a week, for communities in Leeds-Grenville.
- Expanded services in Cornwall with funding to help three different interprofessional teams to work together to help close gaps in care for the region.
- A Community Health Centre site in Kingston that will provide care to newborns, pre- and post-natal care, as well as support people who have been discharged from the hospital and require timely follow-up care, such as cancer patients.
- A new Community Health Centre in Peterborough will help break down barriers to care for people in the region including Indigenous communities.
- Expanded services in an existing Family Health Team in Campbellford to include additional nurse practitioners, more service hours from existing team providers and a new health promoter who will lead education and prevention programs in the community.
- Expanded support for an existing Family Health Team in Port Perry that will help more patients connect with primary care services.
Interprofessional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals who work together under one roof, including doctors, nurse practitioners, registered and practical nurses, physiotherapists, social workers and dietitians, among others. Timely access to primary care helps people stay healthier longer with faster diagnosis and treatment, as well as more consistent support managing their day-to-day health while relieving pressures on emergency departments and walk-in clinics.
The record investment of $90 million will add over 400 new primary care providers and 78 new and expanded interprofessional primary care teams across the province. In addition to other historic investments to expand medical school spots and efforts to break down barriers so highly-skilled internationally-trained doctors can care for people in Ontario, Ministry of Health modelling shows these initiatives will help connect up to 98 per cent of people in Ontario to primary care in the next several years.
An additional $20 million will provide a boost to all existing interprofessional primary care teams to help them meet increased operational costs for their facilities and supplies so they can continue to provide high-quality care.
