Piccini announces money for family health team to provide primary care for more patients

But has nothing new to say about building a new hospital

David Piccini, MPP for Northumberland-Peterborough South.

MPP David Piccini came to town on Wednesday to announce some good news for the local health care system, but it wasn’t the great news we are all awaiting.

Piccini said that the Trent Hills Family Health Team is getting $221,933 to expand so it can provide primary care to an additional 3,000 people.

In his public comments he didn’t mention the government’s lack of action on our hopes to build a new hospital. Asked afterwards if the government would be taking the next step in the process before its spring budget, Piccini hedged and talked about rising costs and province-wide demands for healthcare.

“For us it's about staying true to the commitments we've made, while also keeping an eye to the future and getting deserving hospitals like Campbellford into the planning process,” he said.

“I'm continuing to do everything I can with the premier and with the Minister of Health to amplify our voice here. We're hoping to have the minister out next month to do a tour of the hospital.” 

The next step for our building project would be approval for a planning grant of $2-million to $3-million, which would allow the process, which is expected to take at least a decade, to start moving ahead.

The Trent Hills Family Health Team was formed in 2005, one of the first in the province. It now is partnered with Ontario Health Team Northumberland.

Nurse Practitioner Samantha Dalby said the team now has 11,481 patients rostered with teams led by doctors or nurse practitioners and hopes the new funding will help it add another 3,000.

Nurse Practitioner Samantha Dalby.

“We're in a strategic planning process right now for multi-year funding,” Piccini said. “But this was a big signal near the end of a fiscal year by the government that we recognize the need for primary-care expansion. I would say stay tuned to budget 2024 for more.”

Piccini noted that health teams across the province applied for funding and congratulated the Trent Hills team on its success.

“We were committed to including the proper data and statistics in our proposal that showed not only the need for primary care in our community, but also our capacity to connect unattached patients to a primary-care provider moving forward,” said Delayne Donald, executive director of the Trent Hills Family Health Team.

“This is the start you've wanted,” Piccini said. “You've said you deserve an expansion. You're getting that from the government of Ontario. It's a big day for Trent Hills and builds on investments we've made in the past and future investments we're going to continue making in this very deserving community with remarkable healthcare professionals.”

He was asked how money would help if the problem is a shortage of trained medical professionals. Piccini noted the province is dealing with this problem by increasing space in medical schools and making it easier for foreign-trained professionals to immigrate.

“The challenge is multifaceted,” he said. “We can’t just click our heels together and have a well-trained healthcare professional. It takes years.”

Mayor Bob Crate said: “This is welcome news for our community. The challenge of accessing primary care is a worry for too many of our residents.”