Councils fill healthcare funding gap
Lack of provincial spending forces local politicians to step in
Our municipalities continue to spend money on healthcare, which is actually a provincial responsibility, but they are filling a gap created by the Ford government continuing to lag other provinces in spending.
Last week, Northumberland County Council agreed to spend $40,000 on a county-wide physician-recruitment marketing campaign to address the physician shortage in the region.
Half the money, $20,000, will go towards marketing, including creating a promotional video and related campaign. The remaining $20,000 will be used to review physician recruitment and expand recruitment efforts.
On Tuesday, Sept. 24, Trent Hills council decided to spend $20,000, plus donate glass walls valued at $3,000, to improve accessibility at the municipally owned Warkworth Community Medical Centre.
The board that oversees the centre had asked the municipality to pay one-third of the cost of renovations that are estimated to cost $75-80,000. The Warkworth Community Service Club and the Warkworth Foundation had both agreed to pay a third of the cost.
Instead, a report by Chief Administrative Officer Lynn Phillips recommended that council offer $20,000 for renovations focused on improving accessibility.
She also recommended the municipality donate tempered-glass reception panels used in the municipal office before it was renovated. These glass panels will be installed on the new service counter. This in-kind contribution of glass panels is estimated at approximately $3,000.
The medical centre was built in early 1970s by the Warkworth Community Service Club and donated to Percy Township.
The renovation project includes removing the vestibule; lowering the service counter; installing new flooring; installing LED lights; creating a new exam room; and replacing washing stations and storage cabinets in each exam room.
In addition, at the Tuesday meeting council received a report on how its $100,000 contribution to the Trent Hills Family Health Team is helping attract and retain physicians. Council agreed to the spending last winter but wanted a report by September 30.
The report, by Delayne Donald, executive director of the team, and medical director Dr. Paul Williams, said that the number of patients on their waitlist has been cut from 3,000 to 1,600 thanks to the addition of a physician and a nurse practitioner.
“I am very encouraged to see the waiting list reduced,” said Councillor Rick English.
Phillips said the municipality’s draft budget for 2025 will include another $100,000 to support the family health team’s recruitment efforts.
The health team said it has recruited Dr. Marwah Ali, who is expected to join the team in November or December. She studied medicine at University of Mosul, Iraq, graduating in 2013. She has been completing a placement at Nipigon Medical Facility in Nipigon, ON.
The health team’s report said the municipal money was used to pay rent on offices in Campbellford, $27,081; Warkworth, $18,054; and Hastings, $9,027; and to convert paper records to digital ones. So far this year, the team has spent $75,422 of the $100,000.
A Financial Accountability Office of Ontario report released last April says health care spending per capita in Ontario was $4,889 in 2022-2023, the lowest in Canada, and $876, or 15.2 per cent, below the average of the other provinces. Health care spending includes spending on hospital and outpatient services, medical products and equipment, and public health services.
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It is good to see that the administration of Trent Hills is speaking out about the needs of Heath in Trent Hills. The Province should be doing more. I see where the Premier was in Campbellford about Bloomers expansion. Where is any announcement about the health care and the infrastructure of Trent Hills. The Province sends out messages about money for infrastructure but has Trent Hills applied.