Government of Canada agrees $256m investment to support Newfoundland and Labrador in three-year healthcare action plan

The Government of Canada has signed a bilateral agreement to invest $256 million in improving healthcare access and services in Newfoundland and Labrador, in support of the province’s three-year action plan.

As well as expanding access to primary care by adding new family care teams and adding urgent care centres, the plan aims to utilise new models of care to address backlogs, and to use targeted incentive programs to fill positions and increase retention of healthcare workers.

Another main focus is on modernising health data systems, promoting access to electronic health records for citizens, and implementing a province-wide emergency response dispatch centre.

The plan highlights investments in policies, technologies, people, and processes, to “improve data collection, reporting and analytics to drive system improvements and ensure data can be shared with patients and across the health system”.

Through the agreement, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador commits to work with the Government of Canada to “improve how health information is collected, shared, used and reported to”.

Mark Holland, Minister of Health, said: “This agreement marks a significant advancement for our health care system, promising improved care for residents and improving the overall resilience of our health care infrastructure. Tailored to Newfoundland and Labrador’s unique requirements, this agreement ensures enhanced health care services for all residents.”

Eligible expenditures under the agreement include data development and collection to support reporting, information tech and health information infrastructure, salaries and benefits, training and professional development, and communications material related to programs.

To learn more about the agreement, please click here.

In other news from Canada, we recently sat down for a chat with Siuwin Wang, director of business analytics and health information management at Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital in Canada. Siuwin shared insights into some of the data-focused projects taking place at the hospital, his hopes for the future of data, what it means to be a leader of digital change, and more.