The CEO News Desk features a message from David Graham, President and CEO of Scarborough Health Network, in Network News, our monthly e-newsletter. To receive Network News and other messages to the community in your inbox, subscribe today.
Advancing primary care for Scarborough
Primary care is generally the first point of contact for people looking to get healthcare services for common health issues, chronic diseases, and preventative care—and to be connected to more specialized medical care. Across communities, primary care is often provided by family doctors or nurse practitioners. However, here in Scarborough, about 100,000 residents do not have a primary care provider who they go to regularly. As a result, individuals may go to the Emergency Department (ED) for needs that are not an emergency or for needs that possibly could have been addressed earlier. This can lead to poorer outcomes and more challenges in the flow of patients through the health system.
At SHN, we are working to increase access to primary care by opening new clinics, training more family doctors, and using technology to connect care teams and patients. By listening to our community and working with our partners, we are helping more Scarborough residents get the care they need, faster and closer to home.
With support from the Ontario government’s Primary Care Action Plan, SHN and our partners at Scarborough Centre for Healthy Communities are expanding our Interprofessional Primary Care Team, which includes doctors, nurse practitioners, social workers, dietitians, and more. Our goal is simple: connect thousands of people to ongoing care, especially those who need it most.
Through our Interprofessional Primary Care Team, we are providing follow-up support for patients coming to our EDs and clinics who do not have a family doctor, and helping to “attach” them to a primary care provider. In just one year since launching, our Interprofessional Primary Care Team has attached more than 1,200 patients, with the number of attachments per month steadily increasing. Together with SCHC, we are also working with local ambassadors who meet with residents in the community to connect them to other health and social supports and resources, including offering care in their language and through interpretation services. Alongside our provincial government, partners, and community organizations, SHN is committed to making sure every Scarborough resident has improved access to primary care when they need it.
David Graham
President and CEO
SHN