Your Biweekly News & Updates
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Bright Lights in Action- a member’s story
The Bright Lights Awards presented by AFHTO at the yearly conference is more than just an award for primary care teams. These awards are often the spark that ignites change in other areas of the province, moving health care forward. In Fall of 2023, the Dufferin and Area Family Health Team (DAFHT) won the Spotlight award. DAFHT joined forces with North Peel & Dufferin Community Legal Services (NPDCLS) to offer patients with disabilities their services in preparing applications for the Ontario Disability Support Payment (ODSP) through a clinic that has been an ongoing success.
After hearing of DAFHT’s amazing success with their ODSP clinic, the Couchiching Family Health Team (CFHT) began work on a similar clinic. After connecting with DAFHT, our local Community Legal Clinic of Simcoe, Haliburton, and Kawartha Lakes, and the NPDCLS, we are ready to launch our own Application Assistance Clinic!
Shout out to AFHTO for fostering these awards and providing the opportunity for all of us to connect and learn from one another.
Member stories
Arnprior & District, North Renfrew, Petawawa Centennial and West Champlain FHTs –Minister of Health Sylvia Jones helps celebrate five years of RC VTAC
Bruyère Academic and West Carleton FHTs- A qualitative RE-AIM evaluation of an embedded community paramedicine program in an Ontario Family Health Team
Couchiching FHT- announce the launch of online appointment booking
Peterborough FHT- opens new clinic for unattached patients- video and article
Windsor FHT– Evaluation and Impact of an Oral Health Education Program in a Mental Health Inpatient Setting
CharityVillage course signup extended to April 18
The deadline to sign up for a CharityVillage governance course has been extended to Friday, April 18. As a reminder, the following courses are full:
- Better Board Kit
- Governing your Organization: A Deeper Dive
- IDEA
Limited spaces are available in these courses:
- Diversity, Sensitivity, and Inclusion Training: Promoting Anti-Discrimination and Equity in the Workplace. For more information, please visit this page.
- OHSA and AODA Compliance Training Package (Available for Managers and/or Employees). For more information, please visit this page (managers) or this page (employees).
To sign up for the courses above, please fill out this survey by April 18.
Important reminders for HPV testing
“Thank you for your continued support in ensuring a smooth transition to human papillomavirus (HPV) testing for providers and participants in the Ontario Cervical Screening Program (OCSP).
As with any significant practice change, some initial growing pains are to be expected as everyone adapts to the new processes.
The memo attached provides a summary of the most frequent issues reported by the OCSP laboratory service providers during the first two weeks of HPV testing implementation, as well as a summary of recommendations for managing patients during the transition from cytology to HPV-based guidelines to support ongoing education and change management.”
Connect with your peers using AFHTO’s IHP Directory
IHPs in AFHTO member teams are encouraged to sign up to AFHTO’s IHP Directory! This directory helps improve AFHTO’s communication to IHPs, and it supports IHP networking, information sharing, and collaboration.
After you sign up, you will be emailed a link to a spreadsheet with the names, professions, team names, and work emails of all IHPs who have signed up for open communication. You may sort by profession to see the names of those in the same discipline as you.
AFHTO checks the directory and emails links to new registrants every 1-2 weeks. We look forward to improved communication from AFHTO to IHPs, and across IHPs in AFHTO-member teams!
Seeking Black immigrant family physiciansforstudy regarding ethnicity and race in primary health care
provision
“My name is Vivian Yejide Kilanko, and I am a third-year Health Quality PhD student at Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario.
I am currently recruiting for my doctoral study, “Considering Ethnicity and Race in Primary Health Care Provision: Perceptions and Experiences of Black Immigrants in Ontario.”
This nominal group technique study aims to create an inclusive Afrocentric primary health care (PHC) guide developed by Black immigrant PHC providers to support the consideration of patient ethnicity and race during primary health provision with Black immigrants.
I am recruiting Black immigrant family physicians. For this study, a Black Immigrant is a person who identifies as Black and is, or was, a landed immigrant or obtained permanent residency in Canada.
Please note that the study has received ethical approval from the Queen’s University Health Sciences and Affiliated Teaching Hospitals Research Ethics Board.”
Obesity Canada Clinician Partnership Program-deadline April 11
“Canadian physicians — you don’t have to navigate obesity care alone.
We know healthcare systems often fall short of supporting people living with obesity — or the healthcare professionals who care for them. That’s why we created the Clinician Partnerships in Obesity Program.
This free, year-long opportunity includes mentorship, accredited training, and a fully funded in-person workshop.”
Apply before April 11. Only 15 spots are available.
GoodLife member benefit- 25% off
AFHTO members are eligible for a 25% discount on membership types. To take advantage of discounted rates, you need a membership ID assigned by AFHTO.
As a reminder, AFHTO generates new member IDs only upon request, and updated ID lists are sent to GoodLife monthly. To get your ID or be put on the list for one, please email info@afhto.ca.
News and updates including social prescribing fact sheets and ADHD tool
- Evidence-based fact sheets on the impacts of social prescribing for diverse populations – Canadian Institute for Social Prescribing, March 2025
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in Adults tool – CEP, March 2025
- Help develop comprehensive hypertension guideline– Hypertension Canada
- Beyond long COVID — how reinfections could be causing silent long-term organ damage– CBC, Mar. 20, 2025
ECHO Care Of The Elderly, Apr- 1- May 6 & May 13-Jun 24, 2025
Hosted by Baycrest and North East Specialized Geriatric Centre
- Essential Geriatrics I: 6 weekly sessions from April 1st to May 6th, 2025 on Tuesdays from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM
- Essential Geriatrics II: 7 weekly sessions from May 13th to June 24th, 2025 on Tuesdays from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM
Connected Health Neighbourhoods: A Vision for Health System Transformation, Apr. 4, 2025
Webinar presented by the Alliance for Healthier Communities. Register here.
Lower Limb Wound Prevention and Treatment Strategies, Apr. 8, 2025
Virtual CME program co-hosted by Windsor FHT. Register here.
Primary Care at a Crossroads: Challenges, Innovations and the future of Healthcare, Apr. 16, 2025
Speaker: Dr. Jobin Varughese, Interim Assistant Dean, Primary Care Education, TMU School of Medicine. Register here.
Managing Dementia-Related Behaviours in Primary Care: The VBM Approach, Apr. 16, 2025
Hosted by Baycrest. Learn more.
OMD Educates: Digital Health Virtual Symposium, Apr. 25, 2025
Hosted by OntarioMD. Find out more.
UHN’s Chronic Pain and Mental Health Conference, Apr. 25, 2025
Hosted by UHN’s Centre for Mental Health. Learn more.
Leaders Advancing Wellness: Sharing Strategies for a Flourishing Health Care Workplace, Apr. 29-30, 2025
Inaugural symposium from CMHA Ontario’s Your Health Space program. Register here.
PEACH Health Ontario Conference, May 21, 2025
This year’s theme is Environmental Sustainability in Primary Healthcare. Find out more.