March 18, 2024 | Regina, Saskatchewan | Health Canada

Canadians deserve a health care system that gives them rapid access to health services when and where they need them, while also having the opportunity to age with dignity close to home.

Today, the Honorable Mark Holland, Minister of Health of Canada, the Honorable Everett Hindley, Minister of Health of Saskatchewan, and the Honorable Tim McLeod, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, Seniors and Health Services in Rural and Remote Saskatchewan, announced two bilateral investment agreements totaling more than $560 million in federal funding to improve health care in Saskatchewan.

As part of the agreement CollaborateThe Government of Canada will initially provide nearly $391 million to support Saskatchewan’s three-year action plan to improve its health care system. This plan includes the following elements:

• Improve access to family health services and acute and emergency care Supporting a payment model for primary care physicians in Saskatchewan, expanding the Chronic Pain Clinic in Saskatoon, developing the Virtual Physician Triage (VIBEX) program through the HealthLine 8-1-1 Helpline, and providing chronic acute care and complex care beds in hospitals in Regina and Saskatoon to reduce excess capacity.
• Support healthcare workers and help reduce backlogs by recruiting new healthcare workers, retaining incentives for hard-to-recruit positions and increasing the number of clinical internships to support the expansion of 550 post-secondary training positions.
• Expand the availability of culturally competent mental health and addiction support and specialist care through overdose awareness teams, further expansion of police and crisis teams, increased numbers of addiction treatment rooms and rapid grief counseling services offered by Family Services of Saskatchewan, and support for young people facing mental health and addiction issues.
• Modernizing healthcare systems using healthcare data and digital tools through continued investment in eHealth and information technology in the healthcare sector.

Furthermore, under the agreement Aging gracefullyThe Government of Canada will provide approximately $169.3 million to support Saskatchewan’s five-year action plan to help people age with dignity close to home and access care at home or in a safe, long-term care facility . This financing enables the following:

• Strengthening home and community care services Expansion of community health centers and outreach services and further development of the pilot model for medical homes for patients;
• to improve palliative care Supporting the training of health workers in end-of-life care and increasing the number of health professionals helping patients and supporting palliative care;
• Improving the quality of long-term care and home care services Increasing the number of primary and continuing care providers and improving compliance with long-term care standards through inspections and monitoring.

Progress on these large-scale initiatives and commitments will be measured against the goals that Saskatchewan publicly announces annually.

Under these new agreements, the governments of Canada and Saskatchewan will work together to improve the way health information is collected, shared, used and communicated. simplifying the recognition of foreign qualifications for internationally trained health professionals; Facilitating the mobility of key health workers in Canada; and will take shared responsibility to ensure respect Canadian Health Act to protect Canadians’ access to health care based on their need rather than their ability to pay.

Recognizing the significant gaps in Indigenous health outcomes, the Governments of Canada and Saskatchewan are also committed to working meaningfully with their Indigenous partners to improve access to high-quality, age-appropriate health services. Saskatchewan’s action plan is based on the continued commitment of its Indigenous partners and recent trilateral discussions involving the federal government. All levels of government, within their respective jurisdictions, will make health-related decisions in a manner that promotes respect and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.

Saskatchewan and the federal government will continue to work together to improve health care for all patients in the province, including meeting the needs of Indigenous peoples and other underserved and disadvantaged populations.