As the transit strike continues, local health centres are struggling to get their patients to important appointments.
Alistair Sutherland, manager of primary care services at Centretown Community Health Centre, says that many of the centre’s patients are already challenged to get to their appointments due to physical, social or psychological issues, and the transit strike is making things worse.
“Ultimately, people just aren’t getting the care they need,” he says.
The Ottawa Mission is a non-profit organization that provides shelter and food for people in need. Generally, residents at The Mission do not have cars, and depend on the bus.
Shirley Roy, a media relations officer for The Mission, says that because of the high-demand for taxis, residents sometimes face a wait-time for cabs of up to two or three hours.
“It has happened that people have missed or been late for medical appointments because of the strike,” she says.
“We are going to have to change the way we do business in the short-term because of the hardships people are experiencing,” says Eugene Williams, health promotion coordinator at Somerset West Community Health Centre.
SWCHC implemented a transportation helpline in mid-January, where people can call, and receive help to get where they need to go. The helpline serves people living west of Bronson in Centretown.
Williams says they return calls before the end of the business day, so it is best to call 24 to 48 hours before the service is needed.
Help is provided differently in each case, depending on how serious the need is. The caller must talk to a crisis intake worker, and will be made aware of other resources in the community that could assist them.
If all other options are exhausted, then taxi chits are available to the caller.
The helpline was made possible because the City of Ottawa is dedicating funding to community centres, Williams says.
Sutherland says that health centres are the first priority when it comes to this funding.
While CCHC has not implemented a helpline, Sutherland says they have “beefed up outreach programs” to help as many people as possible.
One of these programs is Aging at Home, which provides frail seniors with a variety of medical services in their own homes. Usually, the service is provided to seniors with very serious mobility or health issues, allowing them to stay home and keep hospital beds free.
This service has now been extended to include people who would usually come into the centre for medical services, but cannot make it because of the strike.
Both CCHC and SWCHC are collaborating with other community organizations and businesses to provide better service to patients who are isolated and cannot meet basic needs, like travelling to get groceries.
SWCHC has discussed a plan with Hartman’s grocery store, where the centre will cover the cost of grocery delivery for those who cannot get into the store.
They are also discussing plans for a shuttle bus that would take people to the grocery store.
While health centres are still struggling, many plans are being discussed, and Sutherland says he is very pleased with the help from the city.
“A lot of great work is being done right now,” he says. “It’s a big relief.”
For more information please visit: http://www.centretownchc.org/
You can reach the SWCHC helpline at: (613)-297-6376