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Community Care |
34 Cambridge St. S., 2nd floor |
Health Centre |
Lindsay Ontario K9V 3B8 |
City of Kawartha Lakes |
Phone: 705-324-7323 |
City of Kawartha Lakes has inched closer to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care's recommended number more...
The Community Health Centre (CHC) for the City of Kawartha Lakes continues to move forward towards becoming a reality. more...
There are approximately 60 Community Health Centres across Ontario, but it is safe to say that the City of Kawartha Lakes’ CHC will be unique in its service delivery model and approach to serving the municipality. Since the Ontario Government announced that management and operation of a CHC for the City would be put in Community Care’s hands, staff and boards of directors have worked tirelessly to ensure that the centre will meet the area’s special needs.
Longtime Community Care Executive Director Valmay Barkey (now with the title of Chief Executive Officer) has consistently stressed that the operating philosophy of establishing a CHC has been to augment the services and programs that have been offered by the agency for almost 25 years.
“The idea will be to practice a continuum of care in an inter-professional setting,” she said. “This means connecting local individuals to the services that they need. With the addition of the health centre, Community Care will be able to offer more support than ever to residents of the City of Kawartha Lakes.”
Following the awarding of the CHC in the fall of 2007, Community Care embarked upon an extensive planning process involving a series of public consultations to inform local residents and to get input about what the priorities of service should be. In addition, potential partners and stakeholders were identified for future collaboration opportunities.
With the unique and often challenging demographic factors of the City in mind (high senior population, large geographic area with many rural settings), key gaps and needs in local health care were identified. They included:
- need for access to primary care providers for all
- a lack of mental health, addictions and substance abuse programs
- lack of information on what services are available locally
- chronic disease prevention and management (significant for the City, which has higher than average rates for most chronic diseases)
- oral health programs
- transportation, especially outside of the Town of Lindsay, is challenging
- enhanced foot care service
Many more gaps and needs were identified through the engagement phase. As the CHC’s ability to take on more programs grows, all identified needs will be given due consideration.
As most residents know, the City of Kawartha Lakes is designated as an “underserviced” area for primary care physicians. It is estimated that 20,000 residents are without access to a primary care provider - there is a need for 16 additional primary care physicians. As a result, the priority client base for the new CHC will be individuals and families in the City who currently do not have their own primary physician. Decisions about selecting the first clients are currently being made by the health care team.
Community Care intends to collaborate with existing local agencies and service providers to enhance care in the community. The partnership approach is to avoid duplication of services, to add capacity to the system where it makes the most sense, to enhance existing programs and services, to ensure the broadest reach across the City, and to achieve comprehensive seamless care, Valmay says.
Community Care has entered leased temporary space for the CHC at 108 Angeline St. S. in Lindsay. Meanwhile, efforts continue to find an optimum site to construct a new facility that will house both the CHC and Community Care’s traditional support services and administrative offices. Officials also hope to establish part-time satellite locations throughout the City, and a campaign to raise funds for CHC needs, such as a mobile unit, will be launched in 2010. Anyone wishing to get involved in the campaign can contact the agency to discuss how to help.
“Perhaps most importantly for everyone to know is that Community Care’s longtime commitment to the health of our community will not change,” Valmay says. “We will continue to use a team approach, with valuable volunteers to help us in our service provision throughout the City of Kawartha Lakes.”