TMU opens Integrated Health Clinics
The Ontario Ministry of Health press conference took place at the TMU School of Medicine. Front row: Dr. Jane Philpott, Chair, Ontario Primary Care Action Team, Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano, TMU provost and vice-president, academic and IHCs’ board chair, Adam Kassam, IHC board of directors member, Sylvia Jones, deputy premier of Ontario and minister of health, Sharanjeet Kaur, TMU School of Medicine chief administrative officer, Dr. Teresa M. Chan, founding dean of the TMU School of Medicine and vice-president, medical affairs. Back row: Mohamed Lachemi, TMU president & vice-chancellor, Nolan Quinn, minister of colleges, universities, research excellence and security, Prabmeet Sarkaria, minister of transportation.
On Feb. 17, TMU took a major step forward in expanding access to family doctors with the opening of two TMU Integrated Health Centres (IHCs) in Brampton, Ont.
This significantly expands access to primary care by connecting more than 14,000 residents to a family doctor and community-centred, team-based care over the next two years.
These centres mark a new era of healthcare delivery, medical education, interprofessional training, and population-based health research in Ontario.
They follow a Feb. 9 provincial government announcement at the TMU School of Medicine of an additional $30 million in funding to expand the primary care workforce.
The Honourable Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, shared news of an additional 170 new primary care nurse practitioner education seats in collaboration with nursing schools across Ontario, including the TMU Daphne Cockwell School of Nursing.
“This is welcome news and we are grateful to the government of Ontario for continuing to invest in health-care in our province," said Mohamed Lachemi, TMU president and vice-chancellor.
"Increasing our skilled healthcare workforce will strengthen the healthcare teams foundational to TMU’s new Integrated Health Centres. These clinics will immediately increase primary care capacity in the Peel region and serve as a model of comprehensive care.," he said.
The flagship IHC is located within TMU’s recently opened School of Medicine in Brampton in the former Bramalea Civic Centre at 150 Central Park Dr.
A satellite clinic is downtown Brampton at 74 Queen St. W. Both new centres opened to patients on Feb. 17.
Two new Integrated Health Centres have opened in Brampton, Ont., making TMU’s commitment to expanding primary care a reality for underserved communities.
The future of health care is here
The new clinics leverage interprofessional teams to reduce wait times and ease pressure on emergency departments and physicians, while offering extended and after-hours services to better meet the needs of working families and patients facing barriers to care.
These centres are expected to serve over 100,000 patient visits annually.
As university-affiliated clinics, the IHCs will serve as experiential learning sites for TMU medical students who will train in interprofessional, team-based settings alongside physicians, nurses, social workers, nutritionists and other health-care professionals.
The IHCs will be able to leverage cross-university collaboration and expertise from schools and programs across TMU, including nursing, social work, midwifery, nutrition, psychology, health administration and biomedical engineering.
“These critically needed clinics will strengthen TMU’s medical school curriculum, which is grounded in equity, social accountability and responsiveness to the evolving health needs of surrounding communities,” says Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano, TMU provost and vice-president, academic and IHCs’ Board Chair.
“They will also benefit from innovative teaching and research integration delivered by the medical school’s leading clinical faculty," she said.
Supporting Ontario’s Primary Care Action Plan
The clinics align with Ontario’s Primary Care Action Plan, which aims to connect every resident to primary care teams across the province.
Peel Region is one of Ontario’s fastest-growing and historically underserved regions, with an estimated 430,000 residents expected to be without a primary care doctor by next year.
TMU’s IHCs will play a central role in Peel’s integrated health system, creating new opportunities for training, research and innovation.
With government funding, the centres will help build a skilled workforce, create jobs and boost the regional economy, while advancing the School of Medicine’s commitment to improving healthcare access and training the next generation of healthcare leaders.
Brampton residents currently without a family doctor within the assigned catchment area are invited to register. To register as a patient with the new clinics please visit the IHC patient registration page (external link) .