How has COVID impacted Nova Scotia’s rural and remote communities?

Managing big change

COVID-19 has made life harder for most of us, but for communities in rural Nova Scotia, the pandemic has created specific health and social challenges, and Community Health Centres are here to help.

“It was a huge curveball,” says Lorraine Burch, General Manager of Our Health Centre, a Community Health Centre serving the residents of Chester Municipality. “It has changed everything.”

Our Health Centre is a hub for health and wellness located about an hour outside of Halifax.

Among the many services offered under the organization’s roof is a walk-in clinic for people without a primary care provider.

“We have managed to keep the walk-in clinic open during the pandemic using a combination of telehealth, a nurse practitioner, and a doctor who continue to see patients on site,” says Burch. 

Filling the gaps

Hundreds of residents do not have a regular primary care provider in the area, and COVID-19 has disrupted timely access for those who do have a family doctor. 

“The walk-in clinic has certainly filled a gap, and we’ve kept it open at our own cost. Other clinics are no longer offering face-to-face visits, so their patients are migrating here. It has been extremely important that we be a beacon of hope in these uncertain times.” 

Despite the crucial role played by Our Health Centre and other CHCs like it, Community Health Centres in Nova Scotia do not receive core funding from the government.

This leaves communities to fundraise independently for access to other vital health services like counselling, social supports, food and food security, and safe affordable housing. The stakes are particularly high for those who already experience barriers to care. 

“We care for seniors, people who are isolated, people who live in poverty, and those struggling with addictions or struggling to put food on the table. It’s the social determinants of health that glaringly stand out,” says Burch. 

Going beyond the medical model

CHCs frame health and well-being holistically, going beyond the medical model to integrate services and tackle social determinants of health, such as housing, food security, social supports, and income.

In the time of COVID-19, rural CHCs are focusing on barriers to care that others may take for granted, such as access to transportation, access to local grocery stores, or having the ability to contact a near-by friend or a doctor if you think you might be sick. 

“We’ve reached out for funding to buy and deliver groceries for people, and we’ve been partnering with community groups to find and support isolated seniors – those who have been quiet, rural people their entire lives who don’t know where to go for help,” says Burch. 

While COVID-19 has strained the health system, it has also shed light on models of care that are adaptive in crisis and responsive to people with complex needs. 

“This pandemic really illuminates what we need and what we don’t need,” says Burch, “and who we actually depend on for services.”

Community Health Centres have the solutions, but they need a global funding model to support and expand this effective approach to community care.