The upcoming provincial election gives each Family Health Team the perfect opportunity to build awareness about the value we deliver to our communities. People running for office need to know (and want to know) how well their constituents are being served through their tax dollars. Why is this important?
- To make sure all candidates running in your riding know you exist, what you do, and what your work means for the people in their riding. As many FHTs have experienced, the person who becomes your MPP can be a valuable resource for the FHT.
- To build confidence in the added value generated by this model of care. AFHTO has met with the Health Minister and Health Critics for the three major parties. All three acknowledged that FHTs are popular with their colleagues and constituents, but many politicians remain skeptical as to whether the results are “worth” the extra investment. The July 23 Petrolia Topic recently reported, “(NDP leader Andrea) Horwath said the NDP hopes the provincial auditor-general looks at the FHT model ‘…to make sure it’s value for money.’”
Many FHTs are very involved with their political representatives already. To help all AFHTO members become more active, AFHTO has developed the following tools:
- Three 3 key messages that can have stronger impact the more consistently they are used. Family Health Teams are Ontario’s innovation in team-based care that:
- Improves access to health care.
- Promotes health and reduces the impact of chronic disease.
- Has the potential to reduce the total cost of care.
- A brochure in English (click here) and French (click here), which:
- Delivers these three messages and provides some evidence for each.
- Contains one page for FHTs to enter their own information.
- Allows you to print out copies as needed to hand out to candidates and campaign workers in your riding, and leave in your waiting areas.
- A list of candidates in each provincial riding and their contact information (click here).
AFHTO sent out e-mails to members by riding on Aug.31/Sept.1 and on Aug.5/6, to enable coordination within ridings. AFHTO encourages you to meet your candidates and spread the good news about your FHT and the FHT model. We hope you will find these resources helpful in your communications. As always, your feedback is welcome.