Ontario Connecting Over 16,000 People to Primary Care Teams in Northwestern Ontario

THUNDER BAY — The Ontario government is investing more than $5 million to connect over 16,000 people to primary care teams in Northwestern Ontario, including Thunder Bay, Kenora, Fort Frances, and Sioux Lookout. This is part of Ontario’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.

“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 thousands of more Ontarians in the region the opportunity to connect to primary care brings us that much closer to this goal.”

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 those not connected to primary care in the region, the province is supporting six new or expanded interprofessional primary care teams in the Northwest to connect over 16,000 Ontarians with primary care teams and provide services including:

Creating a new Indigenous primary care team site to help Indigenous communities in Fort Frances and area connect to holistic and culturally appropriate primary care that was previously not available.
Expanding services in the Thunder Bay region which will provide cervical screening clinics, more pre and post natal care, immunization clinics, and also increase urgent care walk-in hours for the community.
A new Nurse Practitioner- Led Clinic satellite team which will focus on mental health and addictions support and provide care for newborns as well as community paramedicine patients in the Thunder Bay area.
Expanding an existing primary care team in Thunder Bay to help people in urban and rural areas connect to health and social services closer to home.
A new Indigenous primary care team in Kenora to connect people in six First Nations reserves with primary care services.
A new Indigenous primary care team to connect people in Sioux Lookout and the surrounding 33 First Nations Communities with holistic primary care.

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 to the people they provide care to.

Since the launch of Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care one year ago, the government has been making steady progress to ensure the health care system has become better equipped to respond to the needs of patients and provide them with the right care in the right place, faster access to services and access to an expanded health care workforce.

Quick Facts

Ontario’s investment of $90 million dollars triples the original $30 million dollars earmarked to expand interprofessional primary care teams and will deliver over four times as many initiatives as outlined in the Your Health Plan.
As part of the 2024 Ontario Budget, through an additional $546 million over three years, the province is creating new and expanded primary care teams to connect approximately 600,000 people to team-based primary care.
Ontario is the first province to have a publicly funded Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic program. This is in addition to the new Practice Ready Ontario Program that will add 50 new physicians this year.
The new and expanded teams are the result of a province-wide call for proposals that took place in 2023. All proposals were thoroughly reviewed by Ontario Health based on criteria prioritizing areas of greatest need, to connect a greater number of people currently without a regular primary care provider with these services closer to home.
Ontario leads the country in how many people benefit from a long-term, stable relationship with a family doctor or primary care provider. Since 2018, the province has added over 80,000 new nurses and 12,500 new physicians to the health care system.

Quotes

“Our government recognizes the tailored and targeted investments that are required to ensure all community members have access to top quality primary care – when and where they need it. The new specialized funding for an Interprofessional Primary Care Team at Kenora Chiefs Advisory means residents have access to holistic, coordinated care from a range of health professionals, all under one roof.”

– Greg Rickford
MPP for Kenora-Rainy River

“By working with and listening to the health care providers in our region, our government is making targeted investments to ensure every citizen has access to a primary care provider, and today’s significant investment brings us closer to achieving that goal. I look forward to further collaboration with our health care providers in the region and I am excited to see what will be achieved by the recipients of today’s funding.”

– Kevin Holland
MPP for Thunder Bay-Atikokan