Vital Signs Data
Sustainable Development Goal (SDs)
SDG 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.
Primary Healthcare
Primary Healthcare
One of the primary care challenges is that our local system lacks the capacity to support population growth, having been chronically underfunded for years. Despite efforts to be innovative with limited means, primary care— the gateway to our health system— remains under-resourced, which increases pressure on hospitals and the broader healthcare system."
Barinder Gill, Executive Director
Prince Edward Family Health Team
Know where to go for healthcare
If you don’t have a family doctor or nurse practitioner and need non-emergency medical assistance, Quinte Health Care has provided a list of options.
As of April 2023, there were 4,000 PEC residents without access to primary care. Between April and October 2024, the innovative Health Care Connect Premium (HCCP) program connected 750 PEC residents to a family doctor, with an additional 500 expected within four months.
Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital in Picton provides emergency and primary care. Specialized services are available through Quinte Health (QHC) at its hospitals in Belleville and Quinte West. https://quintehealth.ca/hospital/prince-edward-county-memorial-hospital/
The existing 60-year-old Prince Edward County hospital building – which serves more than 40,000 patient visits a year – is over 60 years old and is too small to accommodate The County’s growing population. A new hospital is planned that will comprise over 95,000 square feet of space and provide 24/7 emergency services, expanded inpatient beds, and leading-edge equipment. See Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation pecmhf.ca
The Prince Edward Family Health Team (PEFHT) has 23 regulated physician positions and team members. They provide integrated, team-based, patient-centred primary care through direct office care and programs and services aimed at meeting the distinct health needs of the PEC community. pefht.ca
Nurse Practitioner-led Community Clinic
The Prince Edward Family Health Team Community Clinic addresses problem-specific primary care to unattached residents of Prince Edward County (those without a primary care provider). See details …
Ambulance Service
Prince Edward County is looking at expanding its ambulance service. Since 2007, there has been a 42% increase in call volume. Overnight calls have gone up 53%. (Quinte News March 2023)
Dental Care for Low-income households
Ontarian children and youth aged 17 and under from low-income households are eligible for free dental care as part of the Healthy Smiles Ontario (HSO) program. Services include free preventive, routine, and emergency dental services. Find out more about the Healthy Smiles Program at hpePublicHealth.ca/kidsdental
The Ontario Seniors Dental Care Program (OSDCP) is a government-funded dental care program. It provides free, routine dental services for low-income seniors who are 65 years of age or older. Information is available at hpePublicHealth.ca/seniorsdental
Healthcare Staffing
The shortage of healthcare workers is leading to increased pressure and burnout among current staff. Moreover, despite a growing population and a high percentage of seniors, the number of physician spaces allocated to Prince Edward County has declined from 28 in 2013 to just 23 today.
Our aging society is creating a higher demand for healthcare workers – especially among personal care workers if the “aging in place” approaches are successful. In the past, as people got older they often left their homes and communities to receive care in larger communities with available care facilities. Now, however, older people are more interested in remaining in their own rural communities. (Rural Ontario Foresight Papers 2019, Workforce Development in Rural Ontario)
Doctor recruitment
As of Oct/24, 8 physician spaces of 23 need to be filled. County Docs has secured 7 physicians, but ongoing recruitment is vital due to retirements, COVID-related strain, fewer medical students choosing family medicine, and a growing local population. Strategies to reduce barriers for healthcare talent include:
- The Doctor Accommodation Network (DAN) provides housing for locums and new physicians, offering vital relief for family doctors.
- A state-of-the-art, 96,000-square-foot hospital is set to open in 2027, as well as a nearby medical clinic offering resources and space for doctors.
- Starting in fall 2026, new legislative and regulatory changes will, if passed, require all Ontario medical schools to allocate at least 95 per cent of all undergraduate medical school seats to residents of Ontario, with the other five per cent reserved for students from the rest of Canada. (Ontario.ca)
Healthcare workers
Currently in Ontario and Prince Edward County, there is advocacy for more nurse practitioner-led clinics. Nurse practitioners are trained to diagnose, treat and monitor a range of health issues. They’re also able to make referrals to specialists and physicians. According to the Nurse Practitioners’ Association of Ontario, the barrier is lack of government funding. Unlike doctors, nurse practitioners are unable to bill Ontario’s provincial health insurance, or OHIP, for services. (The Star, Nov 15/22, Advocates call for more nurse practitioner-led clinics in Ontario)
- Local bursaries support PEC residents looking to advance their healthcare education.
- A shuttle provides transportation for Personal Support Worker and Nursing student placements between Loyalist College, the hospital, and McFarland Home.
- The redevelopment of HJ McFarland Memorial Home will more than double its size.
Long-term and Palliative Care
The H. J. McFarland Memorial Home is an accredited, non-profit, long-term-care facility operated by the Corporation of the County of Prince Edward and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care. The 84-bed facility will be replaced by a 160-bed facility. www.thecounty.ca/residents/services/h-j-mcfarland-memorial-home/about-h-j-mcfarland-home
» Home & Community Care Support Services, Ontario
Community Paramedicine for Long-term Care
This initiative, delivered by Hastings-Quinte Paramedic Services, helps more seniors on long-term care waitlists stay safe while living in the comfort of their own homes for longer. Through the program, non-emergency home visits and online service 24 /7 hours a day makes specially trained paramedics available for in-home testing, among other services.
Hospice Prince Edward
https://www.hospiceprinceedward.ca
Residential hospice combines the benefits of 24-hour professional care with the comfort and warmth of a home setting. Hospice serves the needs of the individual receiving palliative care and their loved ones with peace, privacy and dignity.
Mental Health & Addictions Care
New 988 Hotline
Canada has initiated the 988 phone service for people dealing with a mental health crisis or contemplating suicide. People needing immediate real time support can call or text the 3 digit number to be connected with a trained professional. The service is free of charge and is available on a 7/24 basis.
Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Hastings and Prince Edward
cmhahpe.ca
Crisis line: 613-969-7400, EXT. 2753
A community-based agency providing a range of client-centred services and supports.
Integrated Mobile Police and Crisis Team (IMPACT)
Mental health crisis workers assist OPP officers on mental health calls.
Information, Support, and Referrals for mental health or substance use concerns
hpepublichealth.ca/getting-help
Supplies and resources for safer drug use
Naloxone kits, needle exchange sites, and safe disposal of sharps.
hpepublichealth.ca/safer-drug-use/
Children’s Mental Health Services Hastings and Prince Edward Counties
www.cmhs-hpe.on.ca 24/7 crisis line available at 613-966-3100.
Services are provided both in-person and virtually depending on the need. Community-based mental health services for children and youth having any one of a range of disorders.
Public Health
Serves the counties of Hastings and Prince Edward from four regional offices. They monitor the health of our local population, deliver programs and services within our communities and help to develop healthy public policies.
Hastings Prince Edward region is one of eight new Ontario Health Teams announced by the provincial government in September 2021. The teams have been developed as a new way to organize and deliver care. The Hastings Prince Edward Ontario Health Team (HPE-OHT) is expected to remove barriers across 46 local health care providers, physicians and community organizations striving to meet the health and wellness needs of people no matter which door they enter or where care is provided, across both counties. This is the first step in a multi-year transformation. (County Live, September 19, 2021)
