Lower Outaouais Family Health Team finds new home in Hawkesbury

It be difficult for people to access the health care services they need at home, but the Lower Outaouais Family Health Team is hoping to change all of that.

On Monday, December 12, the health team celebrated the official opening of its new location at 144 Main Street East, Suite 201 in downtown Hawkesbury.

Previously located in the Trillium building in front of Hawkesbury and District General Hospital, the team moved in October 2011 to the second floor of the building located at 144 Main Street East.

According to Dr. Renée Arnold, lead physician and president of the board, the new building is "more spacious" and has enough room to accommodate two nurse practitioners, a registered nurse, a health promoter, two mental health counselors, a pharmacist and administrative staff working together to provide programs in mental health, chronic disease management and health promotion for more than 18,000 patients.

"The team also includes 23 doctors and their staff currently practicing at 10 sites in the Hawkesbury area," Arnold explained. "All are committed to work within a collaborative inter-disciplinary care team model for the benefit of patients and the community they serve."

Arnold said the health team offers numerous benefits to patients including extended evening hours; electronic medical records that are accessible to members so that the patients' primary-care provider will always be up-to-date on their current medical condition; after-hours care over the phone from a registered nurse and care from other health care professionals within the family health team to help patients manage their health.

The health team is hopeful it may be able to move to a site located on the grounds of the Hawkesbury and District General Hospital once the hospital's redevelopment project is completed, in about five years.

Arnold said the health team "services the whole community by promoting wellness and healing through collaborative care, where the tam works together to support active participation of the patient toward his or her health and wellness goals."

When it comes to mental health, the family health team offers services for children, teens and families. It offers assessments for ADD, ADHD and screening for ASD, as well as counseling services such as social skills training for children, family counseling to resolve family issues and individual counseling to addresses specific needs and issues, to name a few.

The team is also offering a new heart failure program, aimed at patients who have been hospitalized for heart failure. René Déjoie, a nurse practitioner, will work in partnership with cardiologist Dr. Robert Maranda to ensure that management of the condition will be maximized for the individual patient.