Headwaters to receive additional $2.74 million in funding from provincial government

October 24, 2019 · 0 Comments

Written By MIKE BAKER

Dufferin-Caledon MPP Sylvia Jones this week announced that Headwaters Health Care Centre is receiving an additional investment of $2.74 million as part of the Province’s plans to increase investments in hospitals across Ontario, to help end hallway health care.

“We are encouraged by this positive news,” said Kim Delahunt, Headwaters’ Interim President & CEO. “This investment will help us with our current cost pressures and allow us to focus on improving access to some of our key programs and services.”

The Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, Christine Elliott’s announcement indicated the full investment is $68 million to support small and medium-sized hospitals across Ontario. This investment is aimed at adjusting the Province’s funding methods used to support medium-sized hospitals on an ongoing basis.

“Our government is supporting hospitals by ensuring they have the resources they need to meet the growing needs of our community,” said Jones. “This new investment in Headwaters is another example of how Ontario is supporting high-quality access to health care and delivering on the commitment to end hallway health care.”

“I want to thank our many municipal leaders across our region including Dufferin County for continuing to advocate on behalf our local hospital for additional funding,” said Lori Ker, Board Chair, Headwaters Health Care Centre. “A well-funded public health care system is critical to all our communities. In fact, the health and wellness of our citizens depends on it.”

Headwaters, along with many other small and medium-sized hospitals is facing real challenges, especially as the population ages and grows.

Visits to the Headwaters’ emergency department are on the rise. In fact, Headwaters’ emergency room is now seeing close to double the number of patients it was originally designed for 20 years ago, with over 44,000 visits each year. Other priority areas are mental health and addictions services and an overall focus on improving access to care within the hospital and with community partners.

Efforts are underway to build capacity at the local-level, creating stronger communities and opportunities to tackle some of the larger challenges.

The hospital is also a partner in the Hills of Headwaters Collaborative, aimed at becoming one of the Province’s Ontario Health Teams. The health system changes underway will transform the way health and care is organized and delivered – based on the needs of patients and providers. The vision of OHTs is for health care providers to work as one unified team; from hospitals and doctors to home and community care, services and programs are seamlessly designed to support the whole person.