Niagara region hospitals aim for every newborn and child without a family doctor to go home with one

Samantha Beattie · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 29, 2025 2:41 PM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Newborns successful Niagara portion without entree to a household doctor will be connected to those accepting patients through a caller infirmary program. 

Called a "pediatric pathway," Niagara Health said it besides created the programme to assistance children who are hospitalized, and those with analyzable attraction needs, entree superior care. 

When galore infants and kids, nether 18-years-old, permission the hospital, they don't person a household doc to enactment them, said Niagara Health successful a quality merchandise Tuesday. 

Under the caller program, they and their parents oregon guardians volition beryllium provided with information astir physicians and assemblage wellness centres wherever they tin go patients. And for children with analyzable attraction needs, pediatricians at the infirmary volition enactment intimately with the household doc to proceed providing support.

"This pathway is astir making definite nary kid falls done the cracks," said Dr. Madan Mohan Roy, main of pediatrics astatine Niagara Health, successful the statement. 

"Our extremity is to guarantee that each pediatric patient, careless of their situation, has entree to continuous, community-based attraction aft they are discharged."

Family doc shortage linked to measles outbreak

Children with a household doc person better access to vaccines, developmental monitor, aboriginal detection of wellness concerns and a interaction to enactment them with mundane wellness needs, Niagara Health said. It besides helps families debar "unnecessary infirmary visits." 

About 2.5 cardinal radical successful Ontario bash not person a household doctor, including astir 360,000 children according to research in 2024 and 2023, respectively, by the Ontario College of Family Physicians. 

If a babe is calved to parents with a household doctor, helium oregon she could go that doctor's patient. But if the parents don't person a household doctor, the baby could besides beryllium without.

The household doc shortage has contributed to the measles outbreak successful Ontario, with galore cases successful the Grand Erie region, according to section experts. The portion includes the City of Brantford and counties of Haldimand, Norfolk and Brant. 

"It's availability. It's the household doc crisis. It's the not being capable to get vaccines astatine a clip that works with their enactment schedule," Dawn Bowdish, a prof of medicine astatine McMaster University, told CBC's The Current in March. 

"The Canadian concern is 1 successful which outright refusal is really comparatively rare. It's entree and availability and convenience that thin to beryllium the drivers of this fallen vaccination rates." 

Doctors accepting caller patients

There are presently much than 30 household doctors in the Niagara portion accepting caller patients, said Dr. Jennifer Robert, main of superior care, said successful the quality release. 

"That's an important accidental galore whitethorn not beryllium alert of," she said. "By connecting assemblage members with these providers, we're not lone improving idiosyncratic wellness outcomes — we're supporting a stronger, much connected healthcare system."

Physicians who judge caller patients done the caller hospital program truthful acold see 4 successful St. Catharines, 3 successful Welland and 1 successful Fort Erie, arsenic good arsenic done assemblage wellness centres crossed the Niagara region. 

Niagara Health said it is looking to make a akin programme for adults.