Matthew Crossman, Vice President, Operations, Medavie Health Services
Introduction
Working on the frontlines of healthcare is more challenging than ever. Our teams know the toll that lack of access to safe, culturally competent health care has on citizens. This is particularly pronounced in northern, rural and remote communities (National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health, 2019).
At the core of our efforts as a health solutions partner is the goal of improving the wellbeing of Canadians by delivering high-quality, localized, team-based, patient-centric care when and where people need it. Important to our success is finding opportunity to use existing primary health care resources in the most effective and efficient ways and expanding the delivery of health care in out-of-hospital settings.
One promising approach to increasing capacity and reducing strains on hospital resources is community-centered care. Through community paramedicine and other mobile integrated health programs, paramedics and other allied health professionals are able to expand their roles within communities, large and small, to assist with public health initiatives, deliver primary and preventive care and provide support to people in need in socially vulnerable patient populations such as seniors, individuals with complex medical needs and those in remote, rural and Indigenous communities.
Jennifer Zelmer, President and CEO of Healthcare Excellence Canada notes that "People living and working in northern, rural, and remote communities want and deserve excellence in care (Healthcare Excellence Canada, 2023).” Meeting the growing health care demand for underserved communities necessitates adapting, scaling and testing new care models tailored to people's diverse needs and lived experiences. It often requires a shift in thinking, embracing new strategies and accounting for geographic variations, cultural differences and other local factors to redefine what care can and should be for those living outside large urban centers.
When developing these models, it is crucial to listen to and understand the voices of Indigenous Peoples and/or other underserved communities. It is also important to implement practices of culture competent care and include citizens and other community partners in the design and decision-making process.
