The Norfolk Family Heath Team, currently located in Delhi, is making a move to downtown Simcoe.
The move will provide a larger space for the team, a fully accessible office, and more parking to accommodate “exponential growth”, allowing the team to serve the entire Norfolk community.
“Over the last four years we have grown substantially,” said executive director and nurse Robin Mackie in a news release.
“In doing so, we have outgrown our dedicated space at the Delhi Community Health Centre.”
Mackie said the planned move is “bittersweet” since the team is fond of its Delhi locale, but the expansion will allow it to serve rural health care services to more people.
The new Simcoe location is at 185 Robinson St., right near the Norfolk General Hospital.
Mackie said the team expects to accommodate more staff who will enhance the services provided for marginalized and vulnerable members of the county, especially those without a current doctor or access to health care services.
The team’s top priority is offering quality health care to the most unattached patients possible.
There will be a newly dedicated space for the county’s international agricultural workers.
The executive director stressed that all patients currently registered with the health team will be able to keep their doctor and access the same health care services out of Simcoe.
Once the team moves from Delhi, there will be available space in the community health center there to offer more health care services to that community.
Mackie said that’s a “win/win” for the community.
“The new space in Simcoe will honor the Norfolk Family Health Team’s Delhi roots at the health center and recognized the outstanding generosity of the Delhi community.”
She added that, with the health team in “growth mode”, the board will be looking for opportunities to consider satellite services that would bring “small-town quality rural health care services” to a many under-served Norfolk residents as possible.
The health team is government-funded, aimed at local rural health care, and run by a board of volunteers.
“It is rural people involved in bringing quality, sustainable rural health care to Norfolk residents,” said board chair Murray Porteous, “and we act with rural values in mind,”
Mackie said she hopes the move will attract more healthcare professionals to the county.
The building at 185 Robinson Street is also the location of some Norfolk County administration offices in the same building and also houses the provincial offenses office.
@EXPSGamble
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