News Release
1999-53
March 30, 1999
Health ministers announce funds for three health care projects in British Columbia
Ottawa - Health Minister Allan Rock and British Columbia Health Minister Penny Priddy today announced funding for three innovative projects in the areas of home care, primary care and integrated service delivery in British Columbia.
The projects will test and evaluate the following initiatives: a project exploring new approaches in delivering certain home care services to seniors; a system to deliver intravenous therapy on site at long-term care facilities; and, a study aimed at establishing the integration of services in support of community-based programs for the severely mentally ill.
"To build a health care system that will serve us into the next century, we must deliver a full range of health care services to Canadians," said Mr. Rock. "That is why projects like these are important. They allow us to test innovative concepts, collaborate on initiatives and share best practices for the benefit of patients and health care providers across the country."
"Improving health care is a top priority in B.C., and the B.C. government has committed itself to finding new and better solutions to deliver health care services," said Minister Priddy. "These projects, which will test and evaluate various new approaches, will further our goal of providing quality health care for British Columbians for the future."
The three projects will receive a combined total of $530,000 under the federal government's Health Transition Fund (HTF). Since September 1998, eleven other B.C. projects have received a total of $15.2 million under the HTF.
The federal government established the HTF in 1997 following a recommendation by the National Forum on Health. It is designed to generate information on the organization, funding and delivery of health services in four priority areas - home care, pharmacare, primary health care and integrated service delivery.
Evaluation results from projects will be shared with the provinces and territories. The Health Transition Fund provides $30 million to national level projects and $120 million to provincial and territorial projects, allocated on a per capita basis.
Further national, provincial and territorial projects will be announced later.
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Media Inquiries
Stephen Jeffery
Health Canada British
(613) 957-2978
Communications Branch
Columbia Ministry of Health
(250) 952-1887
Public Inquiries
(613) 957-2991
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