The Niagara Ontario Health Team-Équipe Santé Ontario Niagara (NOHT-ÉSON) provided area residents with an overview of the organization’s purpose and initiatives earlier today at the Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre. The information session was the first of several that will take place in various communities in the coming weeks.
NOHT-ÉSON’s mandate, recent activities, and its newly launched website were shared with participants. The session was also an opportunity for the public to provide feedback on how they wish to be involved with this emerging model of healthcare delivery.
“We are committed, through an initiative of the Ontario Ministry of Health, to work as one coordinated team to provide exceptional service, support and care to patients, clients, families and caregivers, and today was an opportunity to demonstrate how we are working together,” said Carol Stewart-Kirkby, Executive Director, Portage Medical Family Health Team.
“Recently, the NOHT-ÉSON was successful in receiving Health Human Resources Innovation Funding that supported a wide range of initiatives such as vaccination clinics for vulnerable populations through mobile clinics, building palliative care capacity, and extra staffing to support cancer-screening backlogs. In addition, there was a significant focus on the implementation of Virtual Urgent Care and SCOPE Niagara to improve patient/client care across Niagara.”
The NOHT-ÉSON’s user-friendly website, www.noht-eson.ca, allows the community to easily access information and resources. The website also enables residents of Niagara to keep up to date on the Ontario Health Team’s (OHT) initiatives and programs.
“This new website is a great example of the shared commitment of the Niagara Ontario Health Team-Équipe Santé Ontario Niagara partners to create and continuously improve information, access and experiences for the residents we serve,” added Stewart-Kirkby. “We are still in our early stages, but as our OHT matures, our website will expand to become a place to access local partner information or provide another option to connect with a service provider or healthcare organization, as well as to provide feedback, stay informed and get involved.”
While the website is new, the team is not, and has been in existence for two years. During that time, relationships and partnerships have continued to be strengthened across healthcare partners as the NOHT-ÉSON advanced co-designing patient-centred healthcare grounded in health equity, engagement and the needs of Niagara residents.
OHTs were introduced by Government of Ontario in 2019 to provide a new way of organizing and delivering care that is more connected to patients/clients in their local communities. NOHT-ÉSON partners provide a wide array of services—primary care, home care, emergency services, public health, social services, mental health and addictions, long-term care, rehabilitation, and acute care—across Niagara.
The NOHT-ÉSON’s upcoming information sessions are as follows:
- Welland – Centre de santé communautaire Hamilton/Niagara – Tuesday, September 13 at 10 a.m. (French session)
- Welland – Centre de santé communautaire Hamilton/Niagara – Tuesday, September 13 at 2 p.m. (English session)
- Lincoln – Fleming Memorial Arena – Wednesday, September 14 at 6:30 p.m.
- Virtual session via Zoom (French) – Thursday, September 15 at 6:30 p.m.
- St. Catharines – Pathstone Mental Health – Tuesday, September 20 at 6:30 p.m.
- Niagara Falls – Niagara Falls Community Health Centre – Wednesday, September 21 at 4 p.m.
- Virtual session via Zoom (English) – Thursday, September 22 at 6:30 p.m.
Click here to register for an upcoming information session.
