By Emily Stonehouse
The Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Haliburton and Kawartha Lakes, Laurie Scott, made an appearance at the Summit Wellness Centre in Coboconk last Tuesday to make an announcement on the future of healthcare in the area.
The Kawartha Lakes Haliburton Ontario Health Team (KLH-OHT), in collaboration with the Kawartha North Family Health Team is set to receive over $3.4 million to expand interprofessional primary health care teams. “It’s hard everywhere,” said Scott in a phone interview following the announcement. “But it’s harder here in northern Ontario. Through this, we’re able to reach more people who need support.”
According to the press release, this funding will help connect up to 6,902 people to primary care in the City of Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton County.
The Kawartha North Family Health Team, with Marina Hodson at the helm, has been offering a walk-in style urgent care clinic since June of 2023 in the former Minden emergency room site.
The team was selected to receive the funding based on a postal code, identifying the highest number of residents not connected to primary care.
“This funding enables us to deliver on our community’s long-standing need for equitable, local access to high-quality primary care,” said Hodson. “It’s a game changer for patients, especially in our rural and underserved communities.”
Scott noted that there is no direct capital with the funding, rather, it focuses on offering support to existing teams and infrastructure. “It’s part of the medical neighbourhood model,” she said. The press release noted that capacity will be increased by “new interprofessional teams in Coboconk, Woodville, and Minden.”
It was noted that local healthcare teams will roll the programming out based on their own internal processes, and will communicate this to their local communities on their own timelines.
“This investment of over $3.4 million to expand primary care services in the City of Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton County is a vital step toward connecting thousands of local residents to the care they deserve,” said Scott. “By building on existing infrastructure and supporting all healthcare providers across the system, this initiative will strengthen team-based care and enhance access to publicly funded high-quality primary healthcare in underserved communities.”
This funding is a part of the $2.1 billion the Ontario government is investing to support the Primary Care Action Plan, which aims to provide 300 new primary care teams across the province. This includes $235 million in 2025-26 that in part is supporting over 130 new and expanded primary care teams across the province.
While the funding does not directly link individuals to a specific family doctor, the model allows for individuals to be assessed based on their needs. Interprofessional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals that work together under one roof, including registered practical nurses, physiotherapists, social workers, and pharmacists, which aims to help patients to receive more connected and convenient care. “It also keeps people out of the emergency room,” noted Scott.
“It is very big news,” she said. “This will go to the areas with the most people in need.”
