Improving health care for seniors and investing in new hospitals, clinics and health-care facilities to improve access are the most important ways to improve health care in the Barrie area and Muskoka, interim results of one of the most comprehensive consultations in the 140-year history of the Ontario Medical Association show.
In the public survey that is central to the OMA consultation, one question asked people to identify their top priority for improving local health care other than dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. One-quarter (25 per cent) of the 387 area residents who responded identified seniors’ health care, including home care and long-term care. The same number (25 per cent) per cent identified reducing wait times as their top priority and 20 per cent identified more doctors as their top priority.
In a second question, residents were asked what “what is the single most important thing that can be done to improve health-care services in your community today?” Forty-one per cent chose “invest in new hospitals, clinics and medical facilities to improve access” and 27 per cent chose “make it easier to get an appointment with my doctor.”
“These findings are incredibly important in helping us at the OMA develop a plan to improve health care and create a more integrated and sustainable system for all Ontarians,” said Dr. Sohal Goyal, chair of the local OMA district. “This is a huge province and health-care priorities here can be very different from those in other regions like Toronto. By completing this public survey, you help make the voice of the Barrie area and Muskoka heard.”