Two St. Michael’s Family Health Team clinics are integrating into a larger and more patient-centered space
By Selma Al-Samarrai
The St. James Town Health Centre and the Health Centre at 410 family health team (FHT) clinics, both located inside the same building on 410 Sherbourne St., are moving half a kilometre to a new clinic space on 95 Homewood Ave. The name of the newly integrated FHT clinic will be Wellesley – St. James Town Health Centre.
The brand new and much larger 24,000-square-foot space will better meet the needs of the multidisciplinary family health teams and their 14,000 patients. The space was thoughtfully designed to provide more staff and patient-centered clinical care in an efficient and collaborative way. The space is expected to open in January 2021.
“We’re not viewing this move as just us picking up our stuff and moving it elsewhere,” explained Dr. Margarita Lam-Antoniades, a physician in Family and Community Medicine at the St. James Town Health Centre.
“We’re trying to be very thoughtful about this new start and to examine our processes, how our clinics work, and how we can incorporate efficiency into our work flow. We want to use this physical move as an opportunity to improve the way we deliver care and that’s a very exciting piece of this move for me.”
One of the key examples of a work flow change in the new space is the hub and spoke model that the clinic is adopting. As a part of this model, the hubs will have multiple desks located right by private patient rooms. The goal of this model is to free up clinical exam rooms for patient care only, by providing the additional hub space for interprofessional staff to perform administrative duties and collaborate on patients’ care plans. The desks will be physically distanced.
The new space includes larger patient exam rooms, with 31 across two floors. There will be seven interprofessional consultation offices, the latest in medical technology and infection prevention equipment, two dedicated elevators, and a larger and brighter space for staff and patients.
The two existing clinics serve a large population in the community and offer many specialized programs including prenatal and post-natal care, an HIV program, addictions support, transgender non-binary care, developmental pediatrics and transition clinic, home and community care, mental health programs, specialist clinics and urgent care clinics. These services will continue to be provided in the new and integrated space.
“Both family health team clinics have a rich history within the community. We provide both general and specialized care and it’s important to us, in this new space, to ensure we’re serving the community in similar ways, and also improving in other ways,” explained Dr. Charlie Guiang, a physician in Family and Community Medicine at Health Centre at 410.
“We’re really excited for this new space. We’re in the thick of deciding how things are going to work and we’re really looking forward to how this space will support us and our patients as we collaborate as one bigger clinic.”
In the lead up to the opening of the new Wellesley – St. James Town Health Centre clinic, consultations are taking place with the clinics’ patients and community partners in order to incorporate their critical feedback.
“The design of the new location will ensure it’s a centre for academic excellence for the many medical and interprofessional learners who are a vital part of the Family Health Team,” said Linda Jackson, Senior Clinical Program Director of the Primary Care and Community Health Program at Unity Health Toronto.
“Our team will be communicating with our community and Ontario Health Team partners to ensure we continue to work well together to foster integrated and coordinated approaches to health care delivery for our community from our new location,” said Jackson.
About St. Michael’s Hospital
St. Michael’s Hospital provides compassionate care to all who enter its doors. The hospital also provides outstanding medical education to future health care professionals in more than 27 academic disciplines. Critical care and trauma, heart disease, neurosurgery, diabetes, cancer care, care of the homeless and global health are among the Hospital’s recognized areas of expertise. Through the Keenan Research Centre and the Li Ka Shing International Healthcare Education Centre, which make up the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, research and education at St. Michael’s Hospital are recognized and make an impact around the world. Founded in 1892, the hospital is fully affiliated with the University of Toronto.
About Unity Health Toronto
Unity Health Toronto, comprised of Providence Healthcare, St. Joseph’s Health Centre and St. Michael’s Hospital, works to advance the health of everyone in our urban communities and beyond. Our health network serves patients, residents and clients across the full spectrum of care, spanning primary care, secondary community care, tertiary and quaternary care services to post-acute through rehabilitation, palliative care and long-term care, while investing in world-class research and education. For more information, visit www.unityhealth.to.