In November 2012, Ottawa City Council voted 19–4, allowing the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) to develop a proposal to establish a casino in the City of Ottawa.

Once a proposal is agreed upon and submitted by the OLG, Ottawa City Council will vote to either accept or reject it. This council vote is expected to take place before the end of 2013, with no more planned community dialogue until then – including whether or not Ottawa residents want to see an expansion of gaming facilities.

Ottawa residents, so far, received very little opportunity to be engaged or consulted on the proposal to establish a casino in Ottawa.

Despite the lack of engagement, on March 25, 2013, nine community health centres and community resource centres took it upon themselves to declare their opposition to the establishment of a casino in Ottawa. Following this announcement, many community members added their voices to this opposition.

The following petition was created to provide community members with a forum to publicly state their opposition to a casino in Ottawa. Copies of this petition will be presented to Mayor Jim Watson and all City Councillors in advance of a vote.

SAY NO TO CASINO EXPANSION IN OTTAWA, CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION!

On March 11, we welcomed Dr. Anna Reid, Canadian Medical Association (CMA) president and Jenny Buckley, research specialist in the Public Health Group, Health Research and Policy Directorate at the CMA to highlight our Centre's work and the community health centre (CHC) model. We were joined my Ms. Jane Moloney, Board Chair of our Canadian Association of Community Health Centres who is also executive director of the North End Community Health Centre in Halifax Nova Scotia.

Our visit took them throughout our Centre where they met dedicated staff from our interprofessional team who work together to keep people well and support them if they're sick. Everyone matters at Centretown CHC, and we pay particular attention to our communities' most vulnerable including New Canadians and seniors living alone.

Starting our tour at the primary care hub, Dr. Reid and Ms. Buckley met the team during morning huddle and saw first hand how nurse practitioners, social workers, family physicians, dieticians, outreach nurses and many others work together.

And teamwork at Centretown CHC doesn't end there. Much of what we do to help keep people healthy revolves around health promotion and education. Community developers, outreach workers and health educators work in our communities and at our Centre to improve individual and community health by addressing underlying conditions. Among these programs is the Diabetes Education Program of Ottawa where registered nurses and dietitians educate and support adults living with diabetes.

Our visitors also had the chance to see our early years room where both children and their parents benefit from programs like playgroups, dental screening, cooking classes and parenting workshops. We're especially proud of our Baby-friendly designation that recognizes our focus on the needs of newborns and helping women successfully initiate and continue to breastfeed.

Through active community engagement, we respond to local needs and deliver tailored services. That's how initiatives like the Ottawa Seniors Pride Network come to be. This group of seniors are committed to creating safe, LGBT-friendly services and residential environments and growing a strong, connected, visible senior queer community in Ottawa. We also highlighted our new services for trans clients exploring medical transition options. Our counsellors play a supportive role in the assessment process and connect clients to local physicians doing hormone starts.

We were especially excited to talk to Dr. Reid and Ms. Buckley about the social determinants of health and health equity given recent work from the CMA's panel reviewing the sustainability of health care in Canada. Included in their recommendations is a call for physicians to support services outside the health care sector that address social determinants and impact on the health of their patients.

We welcome recommendations like these that recognize that health and well-being is all around us -- from the food we eat, to where we live, to how we get around. We've embraced that thinking, and together with our communities and partners, we advocate for and develop services that address the root causes of illness. That's why our services go well beyond medical care and also include things like yoga for stress relief, newcomer cooking workshops, a speaker series on aging well, settlement counselling for newcomers to Canada and even helping to revitalize a local park.

We see our Centre as an open door that leads to the vast network of services available. By working with partners, including the Canadian Medical Association, we hope to make it easier for people to navigate the healthcare network and stay healthy.

It was a great visit with Dr. Reid and Ms. Buckley and we're looking forward to future discussions between the CMA and our Canadian Association of Community Health Centres to support initiatives that improve the health of Canadians in all of our communities.

Please note that currently, the pilot checklists are available in English only.

Large housing | pilot
Small housing | pilot
Mixed large housing and commercial | pilot
Small commercial | pilot
Large commercial | pilot
Institutional | pilot

Partners

The checklist has been developed for Centretown Community Health Centre by the Social Planning Council of Ottawa, with the advice and guidance of a reference group including:  City of Ottawa, Ottawa Public Health, Ecology Ottawa, Hintonburg Community Association, Dalhousie Community Association, Glebe Community Association, Centretown Citizens Community Association, Ecology Ottawa, and DNA Ottawa.

Community Associations

We are grateful to all the Community Associations for their role and efforts in pilot testing and ongoing implementation of the checklist.

Help us adapt and improve our services to better serve you.
Centretown community health centre is committed to providing people and communities with quality services that improve and maintain health and well-being.

And we strongly believe that achieving this goal is a team effort. Together, we can identify key issues and work together to build a healthy community.

That’s where you come in. We've put together a short survey to give you a chance to share your personal experience with us.

Are you satisfied with the services you received? What can we do better to offer you the best possible care and support? We want to know!

It should take about 10 - 15 minutes to fill out and all your answers will remain confidential.

What you think really matters to us. And we value you taking the time to share your experience so we can better serve you and our community.

Fill out our survey here

Questions? Get in touch: info@centretownchc.org

This year, the Centretown Community Health Centre will be receiving an additional $774,686 in funding from the Champlain LHIN and the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care to support people with diabetes who have less access to foot care and to screen immigrants who we know are at high risk and underserved in the Champlain region. This adds to several investments they have received over the past two years to support diabetes care in our community. These investments ensure people receive comprehensive care and support from a team of nurses, dieticians, chiropodists and outreach workers who deliver services in different communities in the region where it makes the most sense.

Read the full release on Yasir Naqvi's (MPP, Ottawa Centre) website.

However, everyone in our jursidiction can access a full range of quality health and social programs. Some of our programs are open to anyone living in the Ottawa region. You need not be a medical client to access these services and programs.

Our Jurisdiction

View Centretown Community Health Centre Jurisdiction in a larger map

Note: This opinion piece was originally published in the Centretown Buzz

When newcomers arrive in our communities, they are generally in better health than the Canadian-born population. But, over time, this health advantage, the “healthy immigrant effect,” tends to wear away and newcomers’ health status decreases, becoming more in line with the average Canadian’s.

While some health issues are age-related, the stress of settlement and integration accounts for other health problems. Newcomers often face a lack of suitable employment, increased poverty, adverse mental health effects and an inability to pay for health coverage not available through the public health system.

The overall lack of stability and wellness among newcomers, immigrants and refugees alike, contributes to their deteriorating health. They often lack social support networks and are falling into long-term disadvantage, including becoming socially excluded and working in unsafe work environments. And there are other areas affecting their personal and family health – adequate housing, food security, education, and community integration – that need to be considered as part of a comprehensive health approach.

Across Canada, more than one-third of recent immigrants are considered poor. Research consistently shows the links between income levels and people and communities’ health. It suggests that people with lower incomes are more likely to be unhealthy.
At the most fundamental level, employment and sufficient income allow people to afford life’s basic necessities such as healthy
food and a safe place to call home.

As community health centres (CHCs), we pride ourselves on our ability to respond to the needs of our communities. Being in tune locally means that centres are well positioned to provide appropriate services to a diverse clientele. With newcomers accounting for an increasing share of those we serve, we have been proactive in developing and maintaining programs and services that are appropriate and address particular needs.

At the Centretown Community Health Centre (Centretown CHC), a tailored new Canadians’ medical clinic was designed to provide medical services in a way that’s accessible to people who are new to Canada. The Somerset West Community Health Centre (Somerset West CHC) works in partnership with The Wellness Centre for Refugees to screen refugees for communicable diseases, provide vaccinations and arrange referrals to primary care physicians.

But health and wellness go well beyond providing medical services. We’re not just there to fix people when they’re sick. We’re always there to support people so they stay healthy. Community health centres also offer programming that focuses on the social aspects of good health and wellness.

By striving to break down barriers and the isolation that some immigrants can feel, we focus on healthy and active living as a way to help newcomers stay in their homes and avoid hospitalization.
Some programming is ongoing, like the Yet Keen Seniors’ Day Centre that the Somerset West CHC offers at the Bronson Centre.

It provides opportunities for seniors to participate in recreational and fitness exercise programs. Among its goals, it strives to help isolated seniors sustain physical, mental and social well-being, and maintain their independence in their home environments.
Centres also develop programming as needs and demands arise throughout the year, from grocery store tours to English conversational groups.

But we can’t do it alone. We work in close collaboration with our partners in settlement agencies to design and deliver programs. For example, Centretown CHC worked with Immigrant Women Services Organization and Ottawa Chinese Community Services Centre to develop Better Health Better Living, a health promotion program for very isolated Cantonese, Spanish, and Arabic speaking seniors
Ultimately, community health centres are an open door that leads to many more: get in touch with us, and we’ll help you access the services you need.

That’s why our multicultural outreach workers go into our communities, where people live, work and play, to tell newcomers about available services and programs.

This column is a collaboration between the Centretown and Somerset West Community Health Centres (CHCs). They provide a full range of health and social services to individuals and families. Through leadership and support, they foster the active participation of individuals and groups in a common effort to build healthier communities.

Note: This opinion piece was originally published in the Centretown Buzz

Imagine you are standing at the top of Niagara Falls in a windstorm. What would you prefer: a strong railing that prevents you from falling over the falls or a fleet of lifeboats and paramedics at the bottom in case you do?

This is the question posed in the report “The Dollars and Sense of Poverty,” released by the National Council of Welfare. The metaphor describes our current approach to poverty in Canada. We are investing a great deal of money in lifeboats and not putting very much into railings. For example, we put lots of money into homeless shelters but very little into affordable housing, which prevents homelessness.

The biggest question this report asks is “Why can’t we reduce poverty in Canada?” We have been trying since the 1960s with limited success.
In general, there is a sense in society that certain people have caused their own poverty or that it’s too expensive to tackle poverty. However, reducing poverty improves opportunities for all people to be healthy and fosters well-being for individuals and for the broader community.
Investing in programs that prevent poverty is proven to succeed. Examples include Pathways to Education, an education program for youth at risk, and businesses who invest in training for low wage workers and affordable childcare. Studies have shown that a guaranteed minimum income that is stable, secure and with no strings attached leads to improved health and benefits for the whole community.

What is the cost of Poverty in Canada?

The report states that conservative estimates put the cost of poverty at $24 billion, while the cost to end poverty would be $12.6 billion.

This example is much like the choice that many people living in poverty face when they are told they need medication to prevent illness. But if the medication costs $50, it can be out of reach. This then leads to a visit later on to an emergency department, costing the healthcare system $500.
Doesn’t it make more sense to cover the initial cost of the medicine in order to prevent the greater costs? The old saying that “an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure” applies to solving poverty as much as to anything else.

If this makes sense and we can save money, why haven’t we done it yet?

There are a few reasons. One is that we define our nation’s prosperity by our Gross Domestic Product (GDP), not by the number of people living above the poverty line. Also, poverty is a responsibility shared between federal, provincial, municipal and Aboriginal governments. It’s a challenge for these different levels to coordinate and work together.

Sometimes they do successfully come together. For example, seniors are one group who have seen their levels of poverty decrease. This is because their income security is well coordinated. All kinds of systems are in place to prevent and reduce poverty such as Canada Pension Plan (CPP/QPP), Old Age Security (OAS), Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) and tax credits. Not only do these programs stack together nicely, the private sector also contributes by offering seniors discounts.

In contrast, child poverty has increased. There are some positive steps such as the Children’s Tax Benefit, but the positive impacts are limited by cutbacks including those to the Employment Insurance (EI) program that reduces parents’ income and puts families on welfare.

Many poverty programs are treated as short term, last option programs. As a society, we spend little on welfare, expecting this to act as an incentive to get people back to work quickly. But we don’t track whether this is truly a good incentive.

In contrast, the report suggests that we should have a long term investing model, focussing on return and benefits down the road. Just like investing in children’s education, we might not see the results for many years but we know in the long run the investment will pay off.

Solutions

We need stronger railings at the top of Niagara Falls. We need programs that prevent people from falling into deep and persistent poverty.

The report calls for the following solutions:

1. Adopting a comprehensive Canada-wide Strategy for poverty reduction.

2. Establishing a sustained long-term investment plan that builds on human capacity, removes barriers, creates opportunities and shows potential for positive, lasting returns.

3. Developing a consistent design framework which includes a social assistance design overhaul to create a system that provides money to help people survive without taking away their autonomy and their dignity.

4. Fostering an open forum for conversation and action which includes a space for learning and for hearing from people with lived experience of poverty.

One of the strongest messages of the report is that everyone should be talking about, thinking about and trying to end poverty because everyone benefits when poverty is decreased.

A final note: as we were going to print, I found out that Finance Minister Jim Flaherty axed the National Council of Welfare in the recent Federal budget. Not surprising, as activists say the Conservative government has ignored the council’s research and advice on how to address growing income disparity across the country. This is a great loss for the anti-poverty movement in Canada.

This column is a collaboration between the Centretown and Somerset West Community Health Centres (CHCs.) They provide a full range of health and social services to individuals and families. Through leadership and support, they foster the active participation of individuals and groups in a common effort to build healthier communities.