Accessing Healthcare
Accessing health care can be a tricky thing to navigate. Many residents do not have a permanent family physician, and rely on emergency rooms, triage services, and virtual consultations. Below you will find some resources to help you find care whenever you and your family need it.
Local Hospitals
Local hospital emergency rooms or urgent-care centres provide twenty-four-hour care. If you are dealing with a life-threatening emergency, it is always best to call 911 to dispatch emergency services. Urgent care centres will assess you upon arrival and prioritize you in a waiting room to see a medical professional. Wait-times can be long depending on the situation, but it is important to remain on-site and receive the care you need.
Virtual and Mobile Care
These services have addressed a great need in the community for patients without a permanent family doctor, or patients who are unable to see their family doctor in a timely manner. Some of these services may have fees associated with appointments, and some may be covered by your work benefits or OHIP. All fees should be disclosed to you before access.
Renfrew County Virtual Triage Assessment Centre (RCVTAC)
What does this service provide?
- Virtual care from family physicians.
- In-person care from family physicians and community paramedics.
- Care at Clinical Assessment Centres (CACs) across Renfrew County.
- Care at home care for vulnerable, housebound residents.
Telus health offers a wide arrange of at-home virtual healthcare and mental health solutions. Doctor visits are covered by provincial insurance coverage and are available at all times of the day and night.
Virtual Primary Care – Lanark, Leeds, and Grenville
This list provides virtual care providers in Lanark County
Once you have seen a healthcare professional, you may need to visit the pharmacy to have your prescription filled. You doctor may be able to send your prescription directly to the pharmacy, or you may take a physical copy to the location. Once your prescription is ready to pick-up (wait times may vary) the pharmacist will review the medication and instructions with you.
Pharmacies in Ontario are now permitted to offer some basic appointment needs like urinary tract infections (UTIs), hay fever, pink eye. Services may vary by pharmacy and location. It is always best to ask for a list of services.
Major chain pharmacies in Canada and Ontario include Shopper’s Drug Mart (Pharma Prix) and Rexall. Many grocery stores like Walmart and Costco have their own in-store pharmacies as well. There are several privately-owned pharmacies you can choose from too.
Medical Translation Services
Overcoming language barriers can be a stressful thing when seeking medical care. Below you will find a list of medical-specific translation services.
This service allows you to chat or speak with a nurse about your medical needs. The initial message will be in English or French. Once you are speaking with someone, you may say “No English” followed by the language you do speak. You will then be forwarded to a translator who will organize an appointment with themselves and a medial professional.
Robbie Dean Counselling Centre & Immigrant Women Services Ottawa
The Robbie Dean Counselling Centre is now a partner of Immigrant Women Services Ottawa. This gives them access to IWSO’s translation and interpretation services The spoken language services are FREE in situations involving survivors of domestic violence, sexual violence, and elder abuse.
Service providers working with those coming from refugee camps where it has been proven that they are survivors of war and trauma (i.e., rape, sexual assault, and domestic violence) and have been in Canada for less than a year, can also access this service.
