Nearly 100,000 Scarborough residents don’t have a family doctor. For many, that can mean years of navigating the healthcare system without consistent support, managing chronic conditions on their own, or turning to the Emergency Department (ED) when a health concern becomes a crisis.

Scarborough Health Network (SHN) is helping change that through its innovative Interprofessional Primary Care Team (IPCT) Clinic, which provides coordinated, team-based care for patients without a family doctor, particularly those with complex healthcare needs. The new clinic at Centenary Hospital, has already begun seeing patients. This is the first step in a larger opening for the Centenary clinic, which will further expand into a larger space in the coming months.

Thanks to a transformational donation from The Northpine Foundation, and in partnership with Ontario Health, SHN is now expanding this successful model. Building on the existing IPCT Clinic at Scarborough General Hospital, a new clinic space at Scarborough Centenary Hospital will help connect up to 15,000 more patients to primary care in the years ahead.

For Scarborough resident Hannah Caylao, having that connection has already made a meaningful difference. After moving to the community in 2024, Hannah was referred to the IPCT Clinic after being treated for hypertension in the ED at General Hospital.

“Since then, I’ve been following my doctor’s advice and my blood pressure has been improving,” Hannah says. “I now feel more at ease knowing that I have someone to talk to about my symptoms who takes the time to listen and doesn’t rush the consultation. I’m no longer feeling anxious, and that has made a real difference in my life.”

Hannah’s experience exemplifies what the IPCT model is designed to provide. Patients are often referred after receiving care in SHN’s Emergency Departments, inpatient units, outpatient clinics or diagnostic services. Physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers, pharmacists, patient navigators and community partners work together to provide ongoing care, manage chronic conditions and connect patients with the supports they need.

“Many of our patients spent years trying to navigate the healthcare system without a family doctor,” says Doreen Kaneko, Manager of the IPCT Clinic. “When someone finally has a team that knows them, follows up with them, and helps coordinate their care, it can completely change their experience of the healthcare system.”

Over the past year, SHN has coordinated thousands of visits through the IPCT Clinic and attached more than 2,500 patients to primary care. The clinic’s opening at Centenary Hospital represents progress toward a broader vision: a connected primary care model across SHN’s network that helps patients access the right care in the right place, while strengthening long-term healthcare capacity for Scarborough.

“By expanding IPCT, we can help more residents who have complex medical needs access the right care earlier and prevent worsening of their condition,” says Glyn Boatswain, Executive Vice President and Chief Nursing and Allied Professionals Executive.

Thanks to donor support, SHN can continue to strengthen connections between hospital services, primary care and community supports, helping thousands more patients like Hannah access the right care, at the right time, closer to home.

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