Sandra Zwiers provided the report previously requested by County Council in 2023.
Ms. Zwiers explained that data indicates that the County is experiencing a shortage of doctors, an aging population, and an increase of mental health and addiction concerns since the COVID-19 pandemic. The issues were being experienced across the country and were not isolated to Essex County.
Ms. Zwiers reviewed the hierarchy of healthcare service in Canada and provided an overview of the services under the jurisdiction of the County of Essex; namely, Essex-Windsor EMS, Residential Home Services and the Sun Parlor Home.
Ms. Zwiers provided a high-level overview of funding streams for each service under the healthcare related services at the County and outlined the other financial contributions that the County of Essex was furnishing to enhance the healthcare requirements in our region including infrastructure maintenance and improvements and contributions to the hospital system.
The County had been focusing on advocacy efforts through delegations with Ministries and conversations with MPs and MPPS to help spotlight the unique issues facing the region.
As a next step, Ms. Zwiers suggested gathering further data to more clearly identify where residents are underserved in our communities and report back to Council.
Discussion included considering the opportunity to offer tax incentives related to healthcare related facilities.