The Ontario government is investing $3,310,300 this year to connect up to 7,626 people to primary care in Clarington.
This is part of a Primary Care Action Plan to connect everyone in Ontario to a publicly funded family doctor or primary care provider by 2029.
“By investing in new and expanded primary care teams, our government is strengthening Ontario’s healthcare system and improving access to convenient care. The East Durham Family Health Team will play a vital role in connecting 7,626 residents with a primary care physician,” said Todd McCarthy, MPP for Durham. “Supporting primary care teams is more than a budget decision, it’s the foundation of a healthier, more sustainable system. I also want to thank the 68 physicians in Clarington who have come together in this team-based model to ensure East Durham residents have timely access to the care they deserve.”
The East Durham Family Health Team will establish a process to support the attachment of these East Durham residents currently without a family physician to one of the physicians in Clarington and will communicate this process to their local community.
The East Durham Family Health Team was funded through the latest call for proposals under the Primary Care Action Plan, with all 124 teams receiving funding expected to connect another 500,000 patients to primary care across Ontario. Each team has established a plan to attach a high proportion of unattached people in their community, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist. Through the 2026 budget, the province is also increasing overall funding for the plan to a total of $3.4 billion between 2025 and 2029.
Quick Facts
- Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team is drawing on best-in-class models of care to implement its action plan, supported by the government’s investment of more than $3.4 billion to connect approximately two million more people to primary care by 2029, which will achieve the government’s goal of connecting everyone in the province to primary care.
- The government is making significant progress on its goal of clearing the Health Care Connect waitlist as of January 1, 2025. That waitlist has been reduced by more than 87 per cent as the plan continues to hit its targets and deliver faster access to high-quality care.
- Ontarians looking to find a family doctor or nurse practitioner can register with Health Care Connect or call 811.
- Interprofessional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals that work together under one roof, including family physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, registered practical nurses, physician assistants, physiotherapists, social workers, dieticians and pharmacists, helping patients to receive more connected and convenient care.
- Since 2018, Ontario has added nearly 20,000 additional physicians to its health-care workforce, including an over 14 per cent increase in family doctors.
You May Also Wish To Read
$50,000 of fentanyl seized in drug trafficking investigation