Happy Pride Month!
Each year June is a great opportunity to celebrate the LGBTQ2S+ community and push for continued progress and equality.
Everyone deserves to feel respected, accepted and empowered to be themselves.
Let’s continue to embrace diversity and inclusivity to help make this world a better place!
Every One Matters.
Happy Pride Month!
Cornwall, May 24, 2022 – As front-facing community health organizations, we’ve seen what our community has endured during the pandemic, and the supports needed to get through a crisis. We’re raising our voices for marginalized people here in Eastern Ontario because having leaders and policies that support community health matters. Here are the principles guiding us:
Community Health Matters.
Ontario needs to support community health organizations so they can support their communities. To support community health organizations like ours in Eastern Ontario, we need leaders who will address the health human resources crisis, including through repealing Bill 124, the pay freeze on health care workers, and by ensuring funding levels for operations can meet rapidly rising costs and increasing needs. We also need leaders who are ready to make team-based primary health care more widely available. We know people have specific needs for primary care, mental health, culturally and linguistically specific services. In our region we do not have equitable access to those services. Ontario must act now to address these gaps.
Health Equity Matters.
Ontario needs to support community health organizations’ innovative and transformational local leadership in communities across the province to improve health care experiences and outcomes for marginalized populations. This means finding ways to put Indigenous health in Indigenous hands through systemic change that supports both Indigenous-governed organizations, and cultural safety training so all spaces are safer for Indigenous people. This means supporting Francophone health by ensuring someone’s preferred official language is integrated into the Ontario health card as soon as possible. It means building on innovations to expand and improve care for 2SLGBTQ+ health, including ensuring accessible trans care within primary care. It means greater access and equitable services for rural communities. And it also means collecting socio-demographic and race-based data in health care that’s needed for a clear picture of the health of all populations, and to identify and address disparities.
Digital Equity Matters.
Ontario needs to prioritize equitable and sustainable access to e-health and virtual health services by funding community health organizations to deliver digital equity programs. Whether someone lives in a city, suburban area or rural region, innovations in digital health hold promise to improve the lives and health of people isolated and marginalized in our region while also helping to make our health system more sustainable – if paired thoughtfully and equitably with principles of digital equity. We need leaders who support policies that not only drive a technology revolution in health care, but who understand this important transformation needs to benefit everyone.
Our community health organizations have been especially busy lately with diverse activities, programs, and services to support our communities during those tough times. We’re able to do that work through the support for Ontario’s community health sector. We’re doing that while we continue to offer the wraparound, comprehensive primary health care services you expect from us, as we continue to work to ensure no one is left behind in our region.
The pandemic has taught us many lessons. One important lesson is how interconnected health, and public health, truly are. To ensure a thriving in Eastern Ontario and a thriving Ontario for decades to come, we must invest in community health now. It’s an investment in the future for all of us.
 Marc Bisson Executive Director |
 Erin KilloranExecutive Director |
 Penelope SmithExecutive Director |
NEW! Mental health and addiction services for youth ages 12-25 are now offered at Alexandria CSCE in partnership with SDG & Cornwall Youth Hub. Look at the poster below or call 613-577-7216 for more information.
February 14th, 2022 | The Seaway Valley Community Health Centre, in partnership with Centre de santé communautaire de l’Estrie (CSCE), is pleased to announce the arrival of the new Bridging Care program (Relais-santé in French) focused primarily on supporting underserved populations. The goal of this program is to work in collaboration with health professionals and include system navigation and care transitions for vulnerable and marginalized clients.
Bridging Care Team
A shared model of care is the foundation of this program. Registered Nurses and Community Health Workers are available to work in collaboration with clients, primary care providers, community resources and other health professionals.
The Bridging Care team will work together to provide outreach to individuals to help them navigate the health care and social services system by making appropriate referrals to support their needs.
Who can be referred to Bridging Care?
Our potential clients will be prioritized by a centralized intake. Referrals can be made by health professionals, community partners, family and self-referrals.
Isolated individuals, those living in poverty, those living with chronic disease and culturally diverse residents who often face barriers to accessing the health care services are groups who may benefit from this program, without limitation of age or health condition. Thus, Bridging Care differs from the Regional Integrated Care (formerly “Health Links”), which is reserved for people with at least four comorbidities.
Services are offered within the Upper Canada Cornwall and Area Ontario Health Team (OHT) catchment area.
Eligibility is based on, but not restricted the following criteria:
- Does not have a family doctor/NP
- Multiple health problems
- Recent loss
- Lives alone isolated
- Lack of support network
- Risk of eviction
- Recent fall (in last 3 months)
- Recent ER visits and/or hospitalization
- Cognitive and /or health decline
- Underserved population
- Inadequate income in order to access needed services/supports
If you have any questions about this new program, do not hesitate to contact us.
The Upper Canada, Cornwall & Area Ontario Health Team is looking for patients, clients, residents and caregivers from Stormont, Dundas, Glengarry, City of Cornwall, rural Southeast Ottawa and Russell Township and Akwesasne to join an Expert Group. The purpose of the Expert Group is to improve the quality and experience of healthcare in Eastern Ontario.
Are you passionate about creating a people-centred healthcare system?
Do you have experience in managing chronic conditions in yourself or in a loved one?
If this sounds interesting to you, please contact:
UCCA.OHT@cornwallhospital.ca
613-361-6363 ext. 8764
For a second year in virtual mode, the employees at the Centre de santé communautaire de l’Estrie (CSCE) held their annual auction on December 2nd. This fundraising event, which is important to our clients, especially during these particular times, raised more than $8,000.
For the past 15 years now, the employees at the CSCE have held this annual auction to raise funds for clients who face financial difficulties. The money raised is used to buy gift cards, which are distributed to many people and families residing within our communities. We are so pleased that this initiative can bring some solace to those in need during the holidays throughout the counties of Stormont, Dundas, Glengarry, Prescott and Russell.
Congratulations and thank you to all those who made this event a huge success!
Every One Matters.
Pictures of the event
October 17th, 2021 | On behalf of all of the members of the Cornwall Sunrise Rotary Club and the women volunteers of the “Go with the Flow Project”, I would like to extend to the Centre de santé communautaire de l’Estrie (CSCE) Knitting Club “Les Joyeuses Tricoteuses” a heartfelt thank you for the generous and much cherished donation of yarn dolls.
These dolls will be distributed to children in impoverished areas in Ghana, Uganda, Madagascar, El Salvador and/or Colombia. We have humanitarian projects in each of these areas and know that the children will be thoroughly delighted to receive them.
We are in awe of your skills to create such colorful and unique outfits for these dolls. Your creativity and commitment are to be commended.
Many thanks for helping us bring a moment of joy to others and for helping us “Serve to Change Lives” this upcoming year.
Sincerely,
Sharon Miller, Project Lead
Cornwall Sunrise Rotary Club
Building Equitable Futures
The Centre de santé communautaire de l’Estrie (CSCE) is recognizing Community Health and Wellbeing Week (CHWW) in Ontario to highlight and celebrate our work to achieve the best possible health and wellbeing for everyone living in Stormont, Dundas, Glengarry, Prescott and Russell. CHWW is a time to focus on our efforts throughout the year to break down barriers to care and provide primary care, mental health care, programming and services for our community, including members that are experiencing marginalization.
Learning from the lessons of COVID-19
During the COVID 19 pandemic, we have been addressing the barriers to optimal health and wellbeing from systemic racism, poverty, to food insecurity, lack of affordable housing, and limited or no access to internet connectivity, and social isolation. Our staff and volunteers at CSCE have been responding to the needs of our community.
We continue to focus on eliminating the conditions that cause health disparities for many in our communities. We know many people live shorter-than-expected lives, face discrimination in accessing health services, or live with preventable health conditions. And we know that the pandemic has impacted communities differently. Black and racialized people, Indigenous communities, 2SLGBTQ+ communities, isolated seniors, people experiencing homelessness and those facing mental health and addictions issues have faced disproportional impacts from COVID-19. The communities we serve are still facing barriers, so our work to ensure everyone has the opportunity for good health and wellbeing continues.
As Ontario moves towards taking steps to re-open and as we move through the pandemic, we will continue to advocate for a more equitable future for all. COVID-19 has showed us systems that don’t work for many people, systems that leave people behind, on issues like paid sick days, access to affordable housing, safe working conditions, or access to mental health care, oral health care or pharmaceutical drugs. There’s a lot more work to be done to build a more equitable future for everyone living in our community.
Alliance for Healthier Communities
We are members of the Alliance for Healthier Communities and as a member we are part of a vibrant network of over 100 community-governed primary health care organizations across the province providing accessible integrated healthcare, mental health and community supports to people who face societal barriers.
Together, let’s recognize the importance of locally driven action to change things for our communities. Together, let’s recognize and support the change that can be led by community health.
#CHWW2021
Every One Matters. Chaque personne compte.
September 27th, 2021 | Great news for the area! The CSCE has officially been approved to be part of the Upper Canada, Cornwall and Area Ontario Health Team (UCCA OHT), alongside 32 other partners from across the region – working as one to improve healthcare in the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, City of Cornwall, Akwesasne, parts of Russell Township and rural Southeast Ottawa.
What is an Ontario Health Team (OHT)?
OHTs provide better integrated care by breaking down barriers that may exist between health-care providers and geographic areas. They combine various health services, including physicians and nurse practitioners, hospitals, home and community care, community support services, mental health and addictions services, community health centres, and long-term care.
The intent, when the Upper Canada, Cornwall and Area OHT is at maturity, is that local people will experience easier transitions from one provider to another, including, for example, between hospitals, home care providers or long-term care homes, with one patient story, one patient record and one care plan.
The vision of the Upper Canada, Cornwall and Area Ontario Health Team is “Where everyone’s health and well-being matters!”
Learn more:
https://www.cornwallhospital.ca/en/newsroom?newsid=5482
Notice to CSCE Clients
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