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On International Social Prescribing Day, a prescription to cure loneliness: Celebrating a holistic approach to addressing isolation and increasing belonging

Thursday, March 10, 2022

While most of us have experienced some degree of social isolation over the past couple of years due to the steps taken to slow the spread of COVID-19, for many older adults, these feelings existed long before the pandemic began in March 2020.

To sustainably address social isolation, especially among marginalized populations, the Alliance for Healthier Communities and its members -- community health organizations across Ontario – are working to bridge the gap between clinical and social care through an intervention called social prescribing.

Social Prescribing? What’s that?

First coined as a term in the United Kingdom in the late 1990s, social prescribing is a holistic approach to healthcare. The practice uses the trusted process of receiving a prescription from a health provider to connect people to activities and opportunities for social engagement. Importantly, social prescribing removes barriers for clients to take advantage of local, non-clinical services that help them to develop their interests, goals and gifts while connecting with their communities.

Related Story: Social Prescribing Community Quilt Shares More Stories of Connection

Social prescribing allows health providers to formally refer patients to community-based programs – which could be anything from an art class or dance lesson to an introduction to a local bereavement network – and then also provides a structure within which to follow up and track patients’ progress at meeting their own health goals.

“By integrating social support and care across the health system, we can help people safely reconnect to their communities and reverse some of the health impacts of the pandemic,” says Jennifer Rayner, Director of Research and Evaluation at the Alliance for Healthier Communities. “Social prescribing has the potential to be a game-changer for increasing people’s belonging, and could be a key tool for health and social care providers throughout Canada.”

According to research from the Nova Scotia Centre on Aging and Department of Family Studies and Gerontology Mount Saint Vincent University, approximately 30 per cent of older adults living in Canada – meaning millions of people from coast to coast – are at risk of becoming socially isolated. This is a problem that is widespread and systemic in nature, and that’s why a systems-based solution like social prescribing is needed.

Building on Promising Early Results

If we choose not to address social isolation at the systemic level, we will experience the long-term effects on our health and social systems in other ways. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the effect of social isolation on mortality is comparable to that of other well-established risk factors such as smoking, obesity, and physical inactivity.

Results from the Alliance for Healthier Communities’ research pilot Rx: Community – Social Prescribing, a first-in-Canada social prescribing research project that ran from 2018 to 2020, are very promising. Participating clients reported their sense of loneliness decreased by 49 per cent. They also reported an increase of 19 per cent in social involvement and a 12 per cent increase in mental health.

Bringing Social Prescribing to Isolated Seniors

One participant in the Links2Wellbeing: Social Prescribing project through the Alliance for Healthier Communities and the Older Adults Centres’ Association of Ontario (OACAO), Linda, initially noted mobility issues and mental health concerns due to social isolation following her retirement. During the pandemic, she felt increasingly disconnected.

With some encouragement from family and information from her doctor, Linda was given a social prescription that referred her to community-based programs in Windsor where she lives, offered through the Life After Fifty Seniors Active Living Centre, a member of OACAO.

The opportunity to take part in community-based activities reinvigorated Linda’s sense of purpose. Now, she is a thriving member of the community who regularly knits baby hats and dishcloths for charity events. She also regularly encourages her friends experiencing social isolation to get connected as well.

“Social prescribing makes a big difference for patients during the pandemic who live alone, [are] unable to participate in social activities, and home-bound patients, especially with their isolation and loneliness. A social prescription to group activities gives them something to look forward to,” says Nicole, a nurse who has seen first-hand the positive impacts social prescribing on isolated seniors in her rural community.

Across Canada, social prescribing is gaining momentum among healthcare providers, community partners, researchers, funders, policymakers and health planners.

Together with the United Way B.C. and the Older Adult Centres Association of Ontario, and other key stakeholders the Alliance for Healthier Communities is convening a community of practice for professionals in academia, the arts, health care and more. This community of practice will help deepen understanding of social prescribing, and ways of implementing social prescribing initiatives. It will also provide this growing movement towards social prescribing with a way to learn from one another, raise awareness and develop provincial and national strategies.

“We are confident about the impact this holistic approach to healthcare will have for seniors and our health and social systems overall,” says Sarah Hobbs, CEO of the Alliance for Healthier Communities. “Social prescribing can be an important piece of the systemic solution to address social isolation, loneliness and to promote health equity through increased connectedness and belonging.”

Find out more about social prescribing at allianceon.org/Social-Prescribing.

Déclaration pour le mois de l’histoire des Noirs 2022 : Vers un avenir plus prometteur pour les communautés noires en Ontario et ailleurs au Canada

Célébrer le mois de l'histoire des Noirs

Date:

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Le mois de l’histoire des Noirs est un moment opportun pour rendre hommage aux personnes et aux communautés noires et pour découvrir leurs histoires; c’est aussi l’occasion d’apprendre des leaders noirs et de souligner leurs efforts présents et passés ainsi que leurs contributions à la société canadienne. L’Alliance pour des communautés en santé est déterminée à améliorer l’équité en santé et les résultats en santé des communautés noires. Nos efforts visant à améliorer la santé des Noirs sont renseignés par notre Comité pour la santé des Noirs, qui est composé de directeurs généraux et de chefs de direction de centres membres de l’Alliance pour des communautés en santé.

Alors que nous soulignons le mois de l’histoire des Noirs, nous portons notre attention à la pandémie de la COVID-19 et à son effet destructeur sur les communautés noires au Canada. Les Canadiennes et Canadiens de race noire continuent de subir la pression des urgences de santé publique; ces personnes sont toujours touchées par des pertes en vies humaines et les ravages causés par la COVID-19 et les crises qu’elle engendre. Ces souffrances sont le résultat d’iniquités de longue date engendrées par le racisme envers les Noirs qui est ancré dans l’héritage canadien d’oppression sociale, culturelle, économique et politique des personnes et des communautés noires. Considérant cet héritage et les expériences plus récentes vécues au cours de la pandémie, nous demandons aux dirigeants et aux décideurs ontariens d’agir immédiatement pour éliminer les inégalités qui continuent d’alimenter la pandémie de la COVID-19 et ses répercussions disproportionnées sur les communautés noires. La pandémie ne prendra pas fin pour tous à moins qu’elle se termine pour ces communautés. Cela signifie que les dirigeants politiques et ceux du système de santé doivent agir au plus vite en vue d’améliorer les déterminants sociaux et structuraux de la santé qui rendent les Noirs vulnérables à des crises sanitaires. Encore une fois, ce virus a mis en lumière les lignes de fracture historiques auxquelles sont confrontées au quotidien les communautés noires. Il faut agir maintenant pour éliminer les iniquités auxquelles font face ces communautés.

Cette année, le mois de l’histoire des Noirs porte sur l’avenir des Noirs. L’Alliance pour des communautés en santé est ravie de ce thème qui vise la création d’un avenir plus inclusif pour les personnes et les communautés noires, et qui touche principalement à leur santé et leur bien-être. Cependant, nous sommes inquiets que sans des politiques correctives, qui changent la donne et qui répondent mieux aux besoins des communautés noires, le futur que nous imaginons demeure empreint d’iniquités. Si nous voulons véritablement créer un avenir inclusif pour les personnes et les communautés noires, nous devons lutter contre le racisme envers celles-ci et ses innombrables répercussions sur leur santé et leur bien-être. En vue d’accélérer nos efforts vers un avenir meilleur, nous exhortons les gouvernements, les dirigeants et les décideurs à être audacieux, délibérés et équitables dans leur travail pour réaliser le progrès nécessaire à l’amélioration de la santé et du bien-être des Noirs.

Black History Month Statement 2022: Towards a more Hopeful Future for Black Communities across Ontario and Canada

Date:

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Black History Month is a time to recognize and learn about Black people and their communities’ histories, honour and celebrate Black leaders and their work, both past and present, and acknowledge and celebrate their contributions to Canadian society. The Alliance for Healthier Communities is committed to advancing health equity and improving health outcomes of Black communities. Our work to advance Black Health is informed by our Black Health Committee, which is comprised of Black executive directors and chief executive officers of members of the Alliance for Healthier Communities.

As we celebrate Black History Month, we focus our attention on the COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to leave paths of destruction through Black communities across Canada. Black Canadians continue to buckle under the weight of ongoing health emergencies; Black people continue to experience loss and devastation from COVID-19 and related crises brought on by it. Much of this loss is rooted in deep historical inequities that result from anti-Black racism, which is steeped in Canada's legacy of social, cultural, economic and political oppression of Black communities and people. Considering this legacy and the more recent experiences of the pandemic, we call on Ontario's leaders and policymakers to act urgently to address the inequalities that continue to fuel the COVID-19 pandemic and its disproportionate impact on Black communities. The pandemic will not end for everyone unless it ends for Black communities. This means political and health system leaders must urgently address the social and structural determinants of health that make Black people vulnerable to health crises. Once again, this virus has exposed historical fault lines that Black communities face in their everyday lives. The time to address inequities faced by Black communities is now.

This year's Black History Month is focused on Black Futures. The Alliance for Healthier Communities welcomes the focus on creating a more inclusive future for Black people and communities, which centre on their health and wellbeing. However, we are concerned that without corrective and game-changing policies to meet Black communities' needs better, the futures we envision will remain unequal. If we are to truly create inclusive futures for Black people and communities, we need to focus on addressing anti-Black racism and the countless ways it impacts health and wellbeing. To accelerate our work towards better-envisioned futures, we urge our governments, leaders, and policymakers to be bold, intentional, and just in their work to make the necessary progress in improving Black health and wellbeing.

Alliance members relentless in efforts towards vaccine equity

Friday, February 11, 2022

Photo of community vaccine clinic in Mississauga run by LAMP CHC

[Tailored clinics, like the one pictured above in Mississauga coordinated by LAMP CHC, are helping to raise vaccination rates among marginalized populations across Ontario, and are being led by community health organizations with strong trusted relationships with their communities and partners.]

Relentless.

In facing the Omicron variant of COVID-19, it’s possibly the best word to describe Alliance members’ efforts to support, care for, and inform their communities and increase access to life-saving vaccines.

Clinics for Black communities, South Asian communities, Francophones, Indigenous people, newcomers, uninsured people, children and parents, and others. Outreach to seniors, youth and people with distrust of the health system. Working for and with community members to build trust. Meeting people in their community, where they’re at, with empathy, respect and adaptive and evolving supports.

“We're just trying to do whatever we can to support the work of the Ontario Health Team and our community,” said Kim Fraser, Executive Director at Davenport Perth Neighbourhood and Community Health Centre in the west end of downtown Toronto. “Since Omicron flared up, we opened more spaces in our clinic, and we've added additional times.”

Fraser goes on to describe the whole community and organizational effort that’s gone into ensuring that the Portuguese and Spanish-speaking, as well as Afro-Caribbean populations, can easily access vaccines and vaccination information. The centre and its staff have also worked closely with community partners to reach seniors and youth, including with first and second doses, but also third dose booster shots essential to protecting seniors and others at higher risk due to COVID-19 infection.

“We had clinics where the staff could speak Portuguese and Spanish and it really helped some folks whose English is minimal. It was great for them to be able to access a clinic in their first language and their language of choice.”

Fraser went on to note that the close-knit community relationships – between staff and community members, between community members themselves, and between the CHC and its local partners – has made all the difference. In terms of being able to reach people who most need the shot with the right information and access to clinics, and in the experiences that people have when they come and get the shot.

“Our organization is both a neighborhood centre and a community health centre. We have found that people across all of our programs, including the community services side, have been really instrumental in running these clinics. Our community development and health promotion coordinator runs a lot of the clinics and is just great at organizing it and running it,” Fraser added.

“The Toronto Western Family Health Team have been the vaccinators, and we worked with them. We've been really fortunate to get a lot of volunteers who've helped, and they've come to most of our clinics. They're quite experienced at helping us do these clinics. And we’ve heard from people coming to the clinics that they’re run very smoothly. One man told me today his clinic was really well-run.”

By addressing barriers, building trust and increasing access to vaccines, including third dose boosters, community health organizations all across Ontario are helping to keep people and communities safe during a critical phase of the pandemic. By focusing on health equity in designing vaccination clinics and information campaigns, Alliance members are helping bring an end to the Omicron wave faster, and reducing impacts on their colleagues in other parts of the health system. And of course, this is all happening while community health organizations provide ongoing primary care and social supports tailored to the challenges marginalized people face. You can learn more about specifics from the Alliance’s recent webinar, Vax to the Future, via the recordings and slides for the event.

Here are some other recent examples from across the province of vaccine equity in action!

Community engagement via local community ambassadors, Flemingdon Health Centre

Making appointments easily available in Ottawa, Somerset West CHC

Clinics and information made accessible through language, Unison Health and Community Services

Working with partners in rural Ontario and leading the way to get shots into arms, West Elgin CHC

Weekend appointments, email and phone bookings, providing safe, accessible vaccine clinics for the Black community in Toronto, TAIBU CHC

Working with acute care and other partners in Windsor to reach more people with boosters, Windsor Essex CHC

Pop-up clinics for Black, African, and Caribbean communities in Mississauga, LAMP CHC

Boosting children’s vaccine campaign among racialized communities in Toronto with tailored community approaches, Black Creek CHC

An Indigenous Vaccination Hub, with information, wrap-around care and access to vaccines without an appointment, Wabano Centre for Aboriginal Health

COVID-19 and children’s vaccination specific townhall and information session for South Asian communities, South Riverdale CHC

Pop-up clinic in Midland, ON, offering walk-ins as well for vaccinations, including boosters, CSC CHIGAMIK CHC

Working with partners, across organizations and health sectors, to reach newcomers with vaccines across Toronto, Access Alliance Multicultural Health and Community Services

Nimble approaches in Scarborough, providing options such as community clinics and pop-up clinics to boost access, Scarborough Centre for Healthy Communities

Drop-in access to vaccines for First Nations, Inuit, Métis people in downtown Toronto, Anishnawbe Health Toronto

CHCs working together and with their partners in Hamilton to reach Francophone and other populations with vaccine clinics, CSC Hamilton Niagara, Compass CHC

South Asian-focused clinic in Ajax, Carea CHC

Walk-in clinics in Toronto to make things more accessible for those unable to book ahead, Four Villages CHC

Debunking vaccine and other COVID-19 myths with tailored information and materials, Wellfort/Bramalea CHC

Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinics providing both accurate vaccine information, and access to appointments for shots, Health Zone NPLC and Sudbury NPLC

Clinics accessible for all in Ottawa, with questions answered, Centretown CHC

If you’re seeking more information or would like to schedule an interview with a community health leader from an organization above, please contact:

Jason Rehel, media relations: 416-817-9518 or jason.rehel@allianceon.org

Déclaration concernant les manifestations sous la lentille d’équité

Date:

Wednesday, February 9, 2022

« Tout le monde a la … liberté de réunion pacifique » au Canada, telle qu'enchâssée dans l'’alinéa 2c de la Charte canadienne des droits et libertés. Celle-ci et l’alinéa 2b, garantissant à chacun la « liberté de pensée, de croyance, d’opinion et d’expression », permettent à toutes les personnes au Canada de se réunir avec des personnes qui partagent leurs idées afin d’exprimer leurs opinions : le droit de manifester et de protester. Cependant, ce ne sont pas des droits qui sont accordés de manière équitable à toutes les personnes au Canada, comme nous pouvons le voir en ce moment avec les manifestations du « convoi de la liberté » à Ottawa et ailleurs.

Récemment, l’administratrice en chef de la santé publique du Canada, le médecin hygiéniste en chef de l’Ontario, ainsi que plusieurs commentateurs en matière de soins de santé dans les médias, ont exprimé qu’il faut avoir une conversation réfléchie et respectueuse à l’échelle du pays sur la suite des choses quant à la lutte contre la pandémie au Canada. Cependant, il est aussi devenu évident au cours des dernières semaines, qu’au Canada, les institutions, les services policiers, les dirigeants politiques et la culture dominante s’efforcent de maintenir le statu quo quant à l’iniquité qui existe concernant la possibilité de s’exprimer et de manifester en toute sécurité et sans crainte.

Les évènements et les gestes posés par les manifestants à Ottawa, à Toronto et à proximité des postes frontaliers en Alberta et maintenant à Windsor, mettent à nu la suprématie blanche, la violence et les privilèges sous-jacents de ces prétendus cris de ralliement pour la « liberté ». Les tactiques utilisées par ces groupes (perturbation, harcèlement et intimidation de communautés et de fournisseurs de soins de santé) sont rendues possibles par les institutions, la loi et les forces de l’ordre qui traitent les manifestants et les citoyens qui y participent différemment selon qui ils sont.

Ce double standard a été exposé lorsque le chef de police d’Ottawa a déclaré la semaine dernière « qu’il pourrait ne pas y avoir de solution policière à cette manifestation. » Ce « deux poids, deux mesures » était aussi en évidence dans les messages transmis dans les médias sociaux par le service de police aux personnes qui participaient aux manifestations lors du dernier weekend de janvier; ces messages avaient pour but de les assurer que leurs droits de rassemblement public et de dénonciation seraient respectés, et de leur donner des conseils en vue d’éviter les embouteillages pour assister aux évènements. Un tel accueil à des endroits publics pour manifester et se faire entendre n’est pas un privilège accordé aux manifestants racialisés et autochtones ou d’autres manifestants issus de groupes marginalisés.

Ce double standard pour les manifestants n’est pas un cas isolé. Par exemple, les militants et les défenseurs des terres autochtones sont confrontés à de la violence et des arrestations, et des défenseurs des terres autochtones font face à des accusations pour avoir pris part à une manifestation pacifique. Entretemps, l’action des services policiers est insuffisante alors que la capitale nationale est paralysée, et que des membres de la communauté sont confrontés à du harcèlement depuis plus d’une semaine. Ce double standard est un exemple flagrant de racisme systémique qui maintient la suprématie blanche.

Le fait de tolérer ces manifestations et les épisodes de violence et de racisme qui y sont associés fera davantage passer sous silence les voix des personnes marginalisées par la pandémie et le racisme. L’un des principes fondamentaux d’une démocratie saine est de permettre à divers points de vue d’être exprimés en toute sécurité et de façon transparente, sans crainte de violence de la part d’autres personnes ou du gouvernement. Il s’agit d’un principe que les institutions et les dirigeants canadiens doivent appliquer pour tous, et non seulement pour les personnes qui peuvent bloquer nos rues, klaxonner le plus fort et obtenir un traitement préférentiel des forces de l’ordre et lors de l’application de la loi.

Systemic Racism Impacts Who Gets to Demonstrate Safely: Our Statement On Protesting Through An Equity Lens

Date:

Wednesday, February 9, 2022

"Everyone has the … freedom of peaceful assembly” in Canada, as enshrined in section 2, part c, of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Combined with the freedoms guaranteed under section 2 (b), freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, this means that everyone in Canada is entitled to gather with like-minded people to voice their opinions -- a right to demonstrate and to protest. But these are not rights that in practice are afforded and defended equitably for all people in Canada, as is now on full display with the self-named “freedom convoy” protests in Ottawa and elsewhere.

In recent days and weeks, the Chief Public Health Officer of Canada, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, as well as many media commentators in health care, have commented about the need for a considered, responsible and thoughtful national conversation about next steps in Canada’s pandemic response. What’s also become clear in the last several weeks, however, is that Canada’s institutions, police, political leaders and mainstream culture still work to uphold a status quo of inequitable discourse and inequitable access to the ability to protest safely and without fear.

The events and actions of demonstrations in Ottawa, Toronto and near border crossings in Alberta and now Windsor, reveal to all Canadians the white supremacy, violence and entitled privilege that underpin so-called rallying cries to “freedom”. The tactics employed by these groups – including disrupting, harassing and intimidating communities and health providers -- are enabled by institutions, laws and law enforcement agencies that address demonstrations and the citizens involved in them by different sets of rules, depending on who the protestors are.

This double-standard was laid bare when the police chief in Ottawa said last week: “There may not be a police solution to this demonstration.” It was also made obvious in the initial messaging of the police force to people attending demonstrations the last weekend in January, with social media posts that assured people that their rights to assemble publicly and speak out would be respected, and even guidance on avoiding gridlock to attend the events. Feeling welcomed to public areas to protest and raise their voices isn’t a privilege afforded to racialized, Indigenous and other marginalized protestors in this way.

This double-standard for protestors isn’t isolated to recent events. Indigenous land defenders and activists are met with violence and arrest, for example, and Indigenous land defenders face charges for engaging in peaceful protest. Meanwhile, police aren’t doing enough when the third-largest city in Ontario is brought to a standstill, with community members subjected to harassment for more than a week. This double-standard is a blatant example of systemic racism upholding white supremacy.

Toleration of these demonstrations and their associated bursts of racism and violence will lead to the further silencing of voices of people marginalized by the pandemic and racism itself. Ensuring that differing views can be expressed transparently and safely, without fear of violence from others or the government, is a fundamental principle of healthy democracy. It’s a principle that Canada’s institutions and leaders must make available in practice to all – not just those who can block our streets, honk the loudest, and co-opt our laws and law enforcement agencies into preferred treatment.

Il faut remédier aux iniquités dans le système de renouvellement en ligne de la carte Santé afin que les personnes marginalisées ne soient pas laissées pour compte

Date:

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

L’Alliance pour des communautés en santé (Alliance), l’Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario (AFHTO), le Conseil autochtone des soins de santé primaire, et la Nurse Practitioner-led Clinic Association (NPLCA) exhortent le gouvernement de remédier aux iniquités dans le système de renouvellement en ligne de la carte Santé.

« Seules les personnes qui détiennent un permis de conduire peuvent renouveler en ligne leur carte Santé de l’Ontario. Des changements doivent être apportés pour inclure les personnes qui possèdent une carte-photo de l’Ontario, » explique Kavita Mehta, directrice générale de l’AFHTO. « Il y a des personnes qui ne conduisent pas ou qui ne peuvent pas conduire, dont celles qui ont des problèmes de santé. Elles doivent pouvoir renouveler leur carte comme les détenteurs d’un permis de conduire. »

Le permis de conduire de l’Ontario et la carte-photo de l’Ontario sont des cartes délivrées par le gouvernement qui sont des preuves d’identité et des preuves de résidence; les deux sont acceptées pour le renouvellement en personne. Cependant, le gouvernement n’accepte pas la carte-photo de l’Ontario pour le renouvellement en ligne.

« Il s’agit d’une situation préoccupante, qui l’est encore plus en période de pandémie, » selon Sarah Hobbs, directrice générale de l’Alliance. « Les personnes handicapées sont un groupe qui pourrait ressentir de manière disproportionnée les répercussions de cette pratique. Pour les personnes rendues plus vulnérables par la pandémie, et qui sont plus à risque, l’accès à ce système est également inéquitable. Ces personnes ne devraient pas être traitées différemment et ne devraient pas être contraintes à renouveler leur carte en personne dans un établissement de ServiceOntario. Nous demandons donc au gouvernement de prendre les mesures requises pour que le système de renouvellement en ligne de la carte Santé soit équitable et accessible pour toutes les personnes en Ontario. »

Katie Hogue, infirmière praticienne et présidente de la NPLCA, partage cette même préoccupation. « De nombreux troubles médicaux peuvent empêcher une personne de conduire, notamment des problèmes de mobilité, une déficience visuelle, la démence et l’épilepsie. Des problèmes de santé comme la polyarthrite rhumatoïde peuvent également empêcher une personne de conduire et la rendre immunodéprimée. Le système ne tient pas compte de ces personnes et de leurs besoins. »

La directrice générale du Conseil autochtone des soins de santé primaire, Caroline Lidstone-Jones constate que cette préoccupation est répandue dans l’ensemble du système de soins de santé. « La pandémie a mis en lumière les iniquités dans notre système de soins de santé. Nous devons nous occuper de manière prioritaire des personnes vulnérables et à risque. Cette discrimination est un exemple d’un système inéquitable, mais il y a solution rapide pour y remédier; il faut permettre aux personnes qui détiennent une carte-photo de renouveler en ligne leur carte Santé comme les détenteurs d’un permis de conduire. »

Les associations représentent des équipes de santé familiale, des centres de santé communautaire, des cliniques dirigées par du personnel infirmier praticien, des équipes de soins de santé primaires pour les Autochtones et d’autres modèles interprofessionnels de soins primaires en Ontario.

Pour de plus amples renseignements :

Beth MacKinnon; 647-234-8605, poste 1201; beth.mackinnon@afhto.ca

Liens connexes

Il faut remédier aux iniquités dans le système de renouvellement en ligne de la carte Santé afin que les personnes marginalisées ne soient pas laissées pour compte

Date:

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

Pour de plus amples renseignements :

Beth MacKinnon; 647-234-8605, poste 1201; beth.mackinnon@afhto.ca

Liens connexes

Inequities in Ontario’s online health card renewal system must be addressed so marginalized people are not left behind

Date:

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

The Alliance for Healthier Communities (Alliance), the Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario (AFHTO), the Indigenous Primary Health Care Council (IPHCC), and the Nurse Practitioner-led Clinic Association (NPLCA) call on the government to address the inequities in the online health card renewal system.

“The ability to renew the Ontario health card online is only available to people who hold a driver’s licence. This needs to change to include those with an Ontario photo card,” says Kavita Mehta, CEO of AFHTO. “There are a number of people who do not or cannot drive, including those with medical conditions. Like those with a licence, they need the same ability to renew online.”

The Ontario driver’s licence and the Ontario photo card are government-issued cards that show proof of identity and proof of residency, and they are both accepted for in-person renewal. The government does not accept the Ontario photo card for online renewal.

“This is concerning at any time, and it is particularly concerning during a pandemic,” says Sarah Hobbs, CEO of the Alliance. “One group that could be disproportionately affected by this practice are people with disabilities. People made more vulnerable by the pandemic, and at higher risk, are also faced with inequitable access to this system. These populations should not be treated differently or be limited to only being able to access in-person ServiceOntario renewals. We call on the government to step up and make the online OHIP renewal system equitable and accessible for all people living in Ontario.”

Katie Hogue, nurse practitioner and chair of the NPLCA, echoes this concern. “There are many medical circumstances that can prevent people from driving, such as mobility challenges, vision impairment, dementia, and epilepsy. There are also conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, which can keep a person from driving while also making them immunocompromised. The system is not considering these people or their needs.”

The CEO of the IPHCC, Caroline Lidstone-Jones notes this concern across the healthcare system. “The pandemic has highlighted inequities in our healthcare system. We must prioritize those who are vulnerable and at-risk. This discrimination is one example of an inequitable system but this one has a quick solution: allow people with a photo card to renew their health card online, the same way those with a driver’s licence can.”

The associations represent family health teams, community health centres, nurse practitioner-led clinics, Indigenous primary healthcare teams, and other interprofessional models of primary care in Ontario.

For further information:

Beth MacKinnon; 647-234-8605 x1201; beth.mackinnon@afhto.ca

Related links

Paid Sick Days NOW: Read and share our letter in support of legislation to ensure paid sick leave for ALL workers

Tuesday, November 23, 2021

We've advocated alongside our members, the 600,000+ people they serve across Ontario, and our health and social services partners for many years on this issue.

When someone is sick, they should not have to choose between their job, including ensuring they can earn a living, pay rent or the mortgage, and their own health or the health of their family members. This is a fundamental prerequisite for ensuring healthier communities across Ontario.

Here's our letter in support of Bill 8, which would ensure paid sick leave for ALL workers in Ontario, through amendments to the Employment Standards Act.

The time is now. Share our letter and your support for Paid Sick Days widely, and especially with your local MPP and other leaders.

November 23, 2021

We write today to endorse Bill 8, Stay Home If You Are Sick Act, 2021, currently being considered in the Ontario legislature. Through amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000, Bill 8 would guarantee all workers in Ontario access to 10 days of paid leave in a calendar year, for personal illness, injury or medical emergency, the death, illness, injury or medical emergency of a close family member.

Ontario needs paid sick days for all workers. To truly work for workers, the laws of Ontario need to guarantee that everyone’s rights are respected in all work relationships and all work environments.

The right of a person to stay home from a job to care for their health, or the health and wellbeing of a loved one -- in order to help ensure a faster and full recovery from illness -- is an essential component of any healthy society. But the right to stay home when sick isn’t one that everyone holds equally.

Those with full-time positions with benefits tend to have access to paid sick days. That means they can stay home when sick without the stress of missing essential income, or the fear of losing a job or shifts where they work. People without these benefits tend to be precariously employed, employed via short-term contracts, part-time work, and the “gig economy.” These workers are denied the legal protection in Ontario to exercise their rights; these workers are disproportionately racialized, precariously housed, and work for lower incomes, all of which makes them even more marginalized and at risk of poorer health, including mental health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve seen starkly that the lack of paid sick days increased workers’ risk of serious illness and death, and the risks to family members they live with.

The benefits of paid sick leave, on the other hand, are well understood across the health and policy sectors in Canada and beyond. Among the OECD and the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table alike, the evidence is clear that paid sick days are an essential public health measure. But the benefits of paid sick days for public health and the wellbeing of marginalized workers isn’t just a COVID-19 issue – it’s an issue of health equity every time someone has to choose between their health, their family’s health and being able to earn a living in Ontario. That’s why we’ve seen physicians, health policy experts, and economists alike arguing that the right to minimum number of paid sick days every year is an issue of health justice, of human rights, and of economic competitiveness. As they say: “We are all better off when people don’t go to work sick.”

If Ontario doesn’t want to left behind places like Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Germany, or closer to home, British Columbia, we need to understand that the right to paid sick days for all workers isn’t an issue pitting business concerns and affordability on one side, and workers’ health on the other. This is a false dichotomy. Paid sick days legislation is what is right for workers, businesses, and the economy, because it would support a more sustainable, resilient, and competitive province, with healthier communities, workers and families.

So the time is now. We need action NOW on paid sick days, both to prevent further tragic consequences of the pandemic, and to build our province back stronger and better than ever before. \

On behalf of our 109 community health member organizations, which include inter-professional health, mental health and social service teams, and which serve 600,000+ people across the province, we endorse legislated paid sick days under Bill 8.

Sincerely,

Sarah Hobbs

Chief Executive Officer

Alliance for Healthier Communities