As we look ahead to fall, and back-to-school, the healthcare system in the past was often anticipating “cold and flu season”. This year is vastly different, as was last. We had hoped to be back to some sort of “normal” by now but instead we find ourselves preparing for a fourth wave of COVID-19.
The healthcare system has been and continues to be heavily taxed by this pandemic. It has been like nothing we have ever experienced – how many times have we all said that in the last year and a half!?! While in the early months, many things seemed to slow down or even halt. We recognize now that there is no choice but to find new ways of doing things, be it providing virtual care to patients, running classes and workshops online, or distributing food in a “curbside pick-up” model. We have all had to adjust our thinking and our actions and our teams her at the CHCN have risen to this challenge.
We are very fortunate in Northumberland County. Our local health, social service and volunteer organizations have come together, both as part of the Ontario Health Team of Northumberland, and individually, to plan and execute COVID Assessment centres, Vaccination Clinics, and provide other necessary supports to our communities. All community partners are committed to continue to work together to develop and coordinate essential, critical services for our residents.
I am very proud of the way our CHCN staff have continued to provide top notch care to our clients during this challenging time, ensuring client needs are met, while keeping everyone safe. We have offered virtual care options in primary care, diabetes education, and mental health counselling, and are still bringing people into the centre when a hands-on approach is needed. Our GAIN team (Geriatric Assessment and Intervention Network) continues to conduct consultations in person and virtually (when possible). Most of our clinical teams are able to do home visits when needed to ensure health care needs are met.
Our Community Team is consistently busy with developing and providing food security programming, conducting regular wellness checks, running virtual workshops and programs, and assessing the needs of our community regularly to determine what is required, and what we can do to ensure these needs are met.
We know that during this time, people are struggling with their mental health, often feeling isolated and lonely. Through creative and innovative approaches, we continue to strive to help people get and stay connected with others. Our new Digital Equity project is a perfect example of a new program that will enable more people to get digitally connected, especially for those who previously could not access technology. We are very thankful to have received an Ontario Trillium Grant this past spring, which is allowing us to develop this exciting project!
One more exciting item of note is that the staff and board of the CHCN have just developed a new Strategic Plan for 2021 – 2023. We will be publicly launching the plan within the coming weeks so keep your eye on our website to see our plan and goals for the next couple of years!
While these times are certainly challenging – we are constantly reminding ourselves what we have to be grateful for. We are all grateful to work in an environment that together, as a team and as a community, we all share the goals and aspirations to work with and provide our clients with the best health care supports and services possible. I personally am grateful to work at an organization with 65 dedicated staff that have risen up to the challenges of this pandemic. I have no doubt that with continued efforts, we will come through this pandemic stronger than before.
