The Paediatric Outreach Program (POP) Consultation Clinic is a joint initiative by University of Toronto paediatric residents and the Scarborough Community Volunteer Clinic to provide quality consultant services in paediatrics to medically uninsured children in one of Canada's most ethnically diverse areas — Scarborough and Toronto’s East Side.
The clinic's patients are uninsured for a variety of reasons. Many are recent Canadian immigrants or refugees, and the vast majority meet provincial homelessness criteria. Thirty-five per cent fall into the 3-month OHIP waiting period faced by all newcomers to Ontario. Another 35 to 40 per cent are failed refugee claimants who have lost their Interim Health Benefits during the appeal of their claim. In addition, a proportion of the clinic population are eligible for OHIP but for various reasons do not have coverage.
The clinic operates monthly and is staffed on a volunteer basis by University of Toronto paediatric residents and staff. It has recently been expanded to receive referrals from primary health clinics, community health centres and community organizations seeing medically uninsured children and youth in the Scarborough area.
During our six-month pilot project, we have seen a variety of common general paediatric cases, from enuresis, asthma and amenorrhea, to developmental delay and behavioural problems in school. Families are grateful for the services provided, and the clinic’s staff have also received positive feedback from referring institutions. With cautious growth, we feel that we could provide this underserviced population with the standard of care that all children should receive in Canada.
Given that the patients do not have provincial health insurance, the cost of tests and procedures is covered by the clinic itself. The money from the CPS Advocacy Grant has been used to help cover start-up costs associated with the addition of a paediatric consultation service to the already operating Family Medicine clinic, including the purchase of equipment, medications, supplies, etc. Furthermore, we have paid for necessary investigations as well as interpreter services. Our goal is to make this a sustainable, long-term program, and we have also been looking actively at other avenues to provide ongoing funding for medically necessary procedures or tests. To this point, the advocacy grant money has been critical to getting this initiative up and running. This funding, along with the overwhelming support of the Scarborough Urban Outreach Centre (Dr. Paul Caulford, Jennifer D’Andrade), Dr. Robert Hilliard and the paediatric department at Sick Kids Hospital, has made our six-month pilot project a success.
Through this grant our resident group has been given the opportunity to go out into the community and help children who would have otherwise been missed by our current health care system. The families we serve are truly amazing but need our ongoing support. Establishing this program on a firmer footing would be a first step toward advocating for their health care rights. We appreciate that the Canadian Paediatric Society has supported our vision and helped us take the first steps on a long and exciting journey.
Sincerely,
Drs Denburg, Hoffman, Kulik, Pai, Papadopoulos, Segal and Silver
The Paediatric Outreach Program (POP)
Posted: April 2010
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