Province launches grants to improve rural health care

By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on November 6, 2024.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

The provincial government is investing $12 million over two years into a pair of grants aimed at improving team-based primary health care.

Both the Rural Team Recruitment Grant and the Municipality Supported Clinics Grant will get $6 million over the two years.

Health minister Adriana LaGrange made the announcement Tuesday morning.

The Rural Team Investment Grant is designed to help community organizations and clinics hire additional non-physician team members to improve access and increase capacity at clinics.

The Municipality Supported Clinics Grant will assist rural municipalities or regions enhance their team-based care, allowing them to support the operations of, or take over ownership of existing primary care facilities.

Expressions of interest for the rural grants are being accepted until Nov. 29 but additional intakes may be considered by the province depending on the number of applications it receives and the grants awarded.

Criteria for the Municipality Supported Clinics Grant include having established infrastructure, a defined need for team-based models of care, cost-sharing, new investments in the clinic, being an eligible rural and remote community, sustainability planning and evaluation participation.

This grant will provide municipalities with up to $200,000 that they must match with new investment by the community.

The Rural Team Recruitment Grant criteria includes increasing clinic capacity, salary cost sharing, being an eligible rural and remote community, sustainability planning, evaluation participation and regular reporting.

LaGrange told media the immediate priority of Primary Care Alberta is “to ensure every Albertan has access to high quality, primary care services in all areas of the province so all Albertans and their families are supported in their day to day health needs through every stage of life.”

The province is also providing $200 million over two years to help stabilize primary care and improve access to family physicians, the health minister said.

And $57 million is being provided over three years to help primary care providers with growing patient caseloads, she said.

And the province has launched a $16 million rural and remote family medicine resident physician bursary pilot program to support family medicine residents who are interested in rural and remote Alberta, the minister added.

With funding from the Canada-Alberta agreement to improve health care, the province is expanding the delivery of integrated health community and social services by allocating $30 million to Alberta’s four community health centres so they can expand services for vulnerable clients over the next two years, the Minister said.

LaGrange said many rural communities have told the government they have an immediate need for primary care support so the government is investing the $12 million into the two rural grants.

“These grants build on our recently announced Rural Health Action Plan to improve rural health care and are part of our unwavering commitment to address rural health challenges. They will improve patient access to team-based care, recruit more health providers and help primary care clinics operationally, ensuring that primary health care is available for every Albertan when and where they need it,” added LaGrange.