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Ontario connecting more people to primary care teams

February 23, 2024   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

The Ontario government is investing almost $880,000 to connect more people to primary care teams in Simcoe-Grey.

This is part of the province’s $110 million investment to connect up to 328,000 people to primary care teams, bringing the province one step closer to connecting everyone in Ontario to primary care.

“Generations of Ontarians enjoy the privilege of having a family doctor as their introduction to primary care,” said Brian Saunderson, MPP Simcoe-Grey. “We know how important primary care is to families throughout Simcoe-Grey. This investment of $879,753 will connect 3,400 people in our area through the Georgian Bay Family Health Team.”

Ontario 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 people not connected to primary care in the community, the province is supporting new and expanded interprofessional primary care teams in Simcoe-Grey.

This funding will allow the South Georgian Bay Ontario Health Team (SGB OHT) to work with primary care partners including the South Georgian Bay Community Health Centre, the Georgian Bay Family Health Team and the Georgian Bay Family Health Organization to run designated clinics to support wrap around primary care for unattached patients in South Georgian Bay, including Collingwood, Clearview, Wasaga Beach and the Blue Mountains. The clinics will aim to host an interprofessional team whose scope of practice will support a population-health-based care structure for the unattached vulnerable people in their community.

Interprofessional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals who work together under one roof and may include doctors, nurse practitioners, registered and practical nurses, physiotherapists, social workers and dietitians, among others. Timely access to primary care helps people stay healthier for 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.

In addition to other 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 that these initiatives will help connect up to 98 per cent of people in Ontario to primary care in the next several years.

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