AOHC member centres are playing a significant role in Healthy Smiles Ontario, the government's oral health initiative for children and youth. Over 30 AOHC centres will help implement the initiative by providing infrastructure funding, expanding programs, and collaborating with public health units. While Healthy Smiles Ontario is a step in the right direction, AOHC intends to advocate for expanding eligibility to include Aboriginal children and removing the OHIP card requirement, as well as extending coverage to low-income adults.

1. Healthy Smiles Ontario: a step in the right
direction
AOHC member centres are playing
a significant role in Healthy Smiles
Ontario (HSO), the government’s
oral health initiative for children and
youth, which is being implemented
two and half years after it was first
announced.
The initiative is part of the
province’s Poverty Reduction
Strategy and is certainly a step in
the right direction in improving the
oral health of low income families.
Over 30 AOHC member centres will
play a key role in implementing
the initiative. For some, HSO will
provide infrastructure dollars to
build new oral health facilities or
retrofit and equip existing suites; for
others, additional program dollars or
infrastructure will enable expansion.
And in the case of some of our
members, collaboration with the
Public Health Unit will facilitate the hiring of a dental hygienist one day a week for screening and assessments.
Children 17 and under who do not have access to any dental coverage and who meet the program eligibility
requirements will be the beneficiaries of the program. Of the promised $135 million over three years, $21
million has already been disbursed, covering the costs of expanding CINOT (Children in Need of Treatment)
from 14 years of age to a child’s 18th birthday. Another estimated $15 million has gone to prepare
infrastructure for expanded programming.
As a member of the advisory group guiding program development, AOHC has mixed reviews on the process
that led to program development. The good news: in some parts of the province Public Health Units
collaborated very effectively with AOHC members in putting together community-based proposals to access
program funding. In other areas of the province, Public Health Units did little to engage communities
and potential partners. AOHC has raised these concerns with the Ministry and is hopeful, with continued
advocacy, that we will ensure more Public Health Units actively collaborate with community-based agencies.
We also intend to continue advocating on three more unresolved issues:
Based on confusion as to the adequacy and availability of federally funded oral health•
programs, Aboriginal and First Nations children appear to have been excluded from Healthy
Smiles Ontario. These children are particularly at risk of developing dental caries and severe
life-time complications; physical, emotional, social and economic.
Continued on page 2
AOHC member centres, such as the Lakeshore Area Multi-Service Project (LAMP) - a
Community Health Centre in Toronto - are playing a significant role in Healthy Smiles
Ontario (HSO), the government’s oral health initiative for children and youth. Donna
Dupont, Planning and Implementation Advisor at the MOHLTC, Lee McKenna, Manager
of Policy and Government Relations at AOHC, Kim Ivan, President Elect of the Ontario
Dental Hygienists’ Association, the Hon. Laurel Broten, Minister of Children and Youth
Services and Russ Ford, Executive Director of LAMP, were all smiles as they celebrated
the launch of HSO at one of the events held on October 1st.

2. In late August, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care Deb Matthews announced 30 new Family Health Teams
for Ontario. Of those thirty, two will designated as Community Family Health Teams (CFHTs) which means
they will be governed by members of the community that the new Family Health Team will serve.
One CFHT will provide primary care in Don Mills, Toronto. The other will be based on the Batchewana
Reserve in Sault Ste Marie. Gloria Daybutch, Executive Director of the N’Mninoeyaa Aboriginal Health Access
Centre, led the successful application for the CFHT in Batchewana. The two new CFHTs will be joining the
family of Ontario’s 15 Community Family Health teams.
A Community Family Health Team is similar in some ways to all the other Family Health teams the Ministry
has been funding throughout the province. But there are some key differences: each is governed by a
community board which means they benefit from the wisdom of people who live, work, play and raise their
children in the area being served. And physicians are
on salary.
Increasingly CFHTs are focussing their resources and
energies on those people in their communities who
are most at need, marginalized by mental health and
addictions issues, minoritized or racialized.
AOHC is encouraged that CFHTs were included in
this last wave of FHT announcements. Now that
the provincial government has hits its target of 200
new FHTs, AOHC sees a key opportunity to once again
make the case about building on the strengths of
community-governed primary health care in Ontario.
Our hope is that as the government moves forward in
further developing new Primary Health Care plans,
community governance will be a key part of the
equation.
AOHC worked hard to encourage the elimination of an OHIP card from the list of eligibility•
requirements. We made some progress however we remain concerned that the compromise
position adopted by the Ministry will doubtlessly eliminate large numbers of non-insured
families and their children.
We are also concerned Healthy Smiles Ontario is too limited in scope. AOHC will continue•
pressing for the change that adult low-income Ontarians, the parents of poor children and
working poor individuals can also access the benefits of the program. Our research with
Toronto Public Health Dentistry and the proposed budget we prepared for an expanded
program clearly demonstrates the sustainability of a program that covers all in need.
“All in all, Healthy Smiles Ontario is good news;” said Adrianna Tetley, AOHC Executive Director. “But there
is work to be done – with the ultimate goal of everyone having access to healthy smiles!
For further information, please contact Lee McKenna, Manager, Policy and Government Relations, at 416 235
2539 x225, 416 436 3257 (mobile) or lee@aohc.org.
Continued from front page...
Healthy Smiles Ontario: a step in the right direction
2
The Hon. Deb Matthews, Minister of Health and Long-Term
Care, Lee McKenna, Manager of Policy and Government
Relations at AOHC and Gloria Daybutch, Executive Director of
N’Mninoeyaa Aboriginal Health Access Centre and the leader
of the successful application for the CFHT on the Batchewana
Reserve celebrate the Ministry’s announcement of two new
Community Family Health Teams.
Ministry announces two new Community
Governed Family Health Teams

3. 3
Save the date for a landmark international
conference
Mark your calendars for a landmark international Community Health Centre event on June 9 and 10, 2011.
AOHC’s 2011 annual conference will be co-sponsored by the Canadian Alliance of Community Health Centre
Associations and the National Association of Community Health Centers which represents Community Health
Centres in the United States.
The gathering will be visionary and inspirational. Over the course of two days we’ll explore the full power
and potential of the Community Health Centre model in action.
We anticipate a large delegation from the United States where President Obama has recently doubled the
Community Health Centre program. We will also be inviting delegates, speakers and workshop presenters
from around the world to share their stories on how they are improving health using a community-based
approach to primary health care.
Two major speakers are already confirmed:
Jack Geiger, founder of the Community Health Centre movement in the United States will•
be among our plenary speakers.
Roy Romanow, who will speak about the Canadian Index of Well Being and how this•
exciting initiative is so well aligned with the Community Health Centre model of care.
Workshops will present innovations from across Canada and around the world that connect with our themes:
improving health outcomes, advancing health equity, and increasing health care sustainability.
Another major focus will be building our Community Health Centre movement. In the United States,
Community Health Centre leaders and activists have played a major role in guiding the direction of President
Obama’s health care reform. Here in Ontario we believe we can learn a lot about the advocacy strategy and
tactics that led to this success.
As they become available new details will be posted at: http://aohc.org/conference. Registration opens
January 15. The full capacity for the conference is 1000 so space will be limited.
AOHC representatives attend gathering of
America’ Community Health Centres
An AOHC delegation recently attended the
National Association of Community Health
Centers’ (NACHC) annual health institute in
Dallas. The goal was to learn more about the
vital role Community Health Centres (CHCs)
are playing in President Obama’s Primary
Health Reform package and to gather insights
to inform planning of next June’s conference
where delegates will learn more about how
NACHC built the case for expanded access to
the Community Health Centre model of care.
Seen from left to right are: Adrianna Tetley,
Executive Director of AOHC, Anita Monoian,
NACHC Board Chair, Joan Lesmond, President
of AOHC, Kauila Clark, NACHC’s Chair-Elect,
AOHC’s Strategic Communications and
Campaigns Manager Mary MacNutt and Jack
McCarthy, Executive Director of Somerset West
CHC and Chairperson of Canadian Alliance of
Community Health Centre Associations

4. 4
There is exciting momentum across Europe to
strengthen primary health care, including a
movement toward more community-oriented
primary health care. The European Forum for
Primary Care (EFPC) is a key driver in this push for
progress among national health systems, regional
health authorities and health care providers.
In late August, the Canadian Alliance of
Community Health Centre Associations (CACHCA)
joined colleagues from across Europe at the
EFPC’s third biennial conference, The Future of
Primary Care in Europe III, to help accelerate
this process. They shared insights from Canada’s
CHCs, and imported back a number of important
lessons to help shape CHC and primary health care
efforts in Canada. CACHCA’s participation in the
Pisa, Italy conference was multi-faceted, including
policy presentations focused on health equity and
community engagement in primary health care, as
well as the urgent need for federal leadership on
primary health care in Canada.
Of particular note, the Alliance collaborated with a
select group of leaders from Belgium, Netherlands,
Spain and elsewhere across the continent to begin
shaping a pan-European Federation of community-
oriented primary health care organizations. These
CHCs and similar organizations from across Europe
will collaborate as the European Community Health
Organization (ECHO) to further build the movement
for CHCs and community-oriented primary health
care across Europe, advocating with national and
regional health authorities and the European Union.
“What was most exciting and encouraging,” reports
CACHCA Board Member, Lynne Raskin, “was to see
and confirm that Canadian CHCs and European
CHC colleagues share a common set of values and
a common concern for the health of individuals,
families and communities. Although we face many
different realities, the conference made clear that
there is a common vision for health, and a long list
of reasons why this sort of collaboration among
CHCs is critical, across both countries and
continents.”
Along with CACHCA’s National Coordinator, Scott
A. Wolfe, Raskin shared her experiences as one
of CACHCA’s Ontario-based Board Members and
as Executive Director of the South Riverdale CHC
in Toronto. The CACHCA team underscored the
Canadian Alliance’s vision for a thriving CHC network
across Canada, where every individual and family
are in reach of a CHC, and where every community
has a CHC to help monitor, and support the health of
the overall community .
A number of resources informed CACHCA’s
networking and collaboration at the conference.
Among these was an exciting new video from the
Association of Ontario Health Centres and Ontario’s
CHCs. Aired for all conference delegates to see,
the video was loudly celebrated since it helped
reassure European colleagues that a common vision
for community health is alive and well in Canada.
Clearly, the Ontario CHC message resonated and
made a strong impact. In closing the conference,
EFPC Chairperson, Dr. Jan de Maeseneer—himself,
a CHC physician in Belgium, for over 30 years—
encouraged Europeans to take up the challenge of
improving the community-orientation in primary
health care. “Why?,” he asked. “Because like they
say at Ontario’s CHCs, Every One Matters!”
To learn more about the European Forum for Primary
Care, and to see proceedings from the European
conference, including a special interview with EFPC
Chairperson, Dr. Jan de Maeseneer (CHC physician
and Head of Community and Family Medicine at the
University of Ghent) visit:
http://cachca-rcaccs.posterous.com.
Canadian and European CHC colleagues
cement partnership
Scott A. Wolfe, National Coordinator for the Canadian Alliance
of Community Health Centre Associations addresses delegates on
the role of Community Health Centres in advancing Health Equity
during one of CACHCA’s two poster presentations at the European
Forum for Primary Health Care’s biennial conference in Pisa, Italy.

5. 5
The benefits of the provincial government’s investment
in Community Health Centres continue to bear fruit as
access continues to expand across the province.
Earlier this fall community members gathered to
celebrate the opening of the Chatham-Kent Community
Health Centres with locations in Chatham, Wallaceburg
and Walpole Island.
Although the Chatham location of the Community Health
Centres began providing primary health care to clients
in June 2010, there is currently a great deal of service
expansion underway involving partnerships with many
other community organizations.
Chatham-Kent Community Health Centres Board
President John Zarebski officially welcomed the
community to the Centre on behalf of the Board and
the Community Health Centre team. “This is a day to
celebrate the diligence and efforts put forth by many
citizens of Chatham-Kent who believe in the holistic
approach to care offered by Community Health Centres”
stated Zarebski.
Similar feelings of celebration were echoed by the
Seaway Valley Community Health Centre (SVCHC)
which held its ribbon cutting ceremony in Cornwall on
September 24th.
Although previously operating on a smaller scale from
an interim site, the Centre hopes to serve about 2,500
clients annually from its new location opposite city hall.
SVCHC Executive Director, Debbie St. John-de Wit
explained that the Centre, like all Community Health
Centres, represents a different approach to delivering
health care as it is designed to meet the needs of
residents who typically face barriers to accessing health
care.
“It’s about taking care of day-to-day health needs,
as well as promoting a healthier, stronger and more
sustainable community.”
Meanwhile in St. Catharines, on a beautiful sunny day
in late August, community members, local leaders and
partners celebrated the interim site construction kick-
off of the new Quest Community Health Centre.
The speakers focused on the exemplary model of
primary health care that CHCs provide, the innovative
community development work of the Quest CHC and the
exciting possibilities ahead for the clients, partners and
community of this new CHC including those inherent
with the future relocation of the hospital from its
current location across the street from the CHC.
Quest CHC will serve the citizens of St. Catharines,
with an emphasis on several populations identified
through the extensive community engagement process
AOHC facilitated in 2006/07. These populations include
isolated seniors, sexually and gender diverse residents
(lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning
or LGBTQ), persons who are homeless/under-housed,
people with mental health and addiction issues as well
as concurrent disorders, and at risk children and youth.
Investment in Community Health Centres pays off
as new sites open
Earlier this fall community members celebrated the opening of the
Chatham-Kent Community Health Centres with locations in Chatham,
Wallaceburg and Walpole Island.
Quest CHC Board Chair George Kurzawa, landlord Raz Mujamder, Quest
CHC Executive Director Coletta McGrath, MPP Jim Bradley, Mayor
Brian McMullen, Hamilton-Niagara Haldimand Norfolk LHIN Board
Chair Juanita Gledhill and AOHC’s Mary Chudley brought greetings and
congratulations as Quest Community Health Centre kicked off their
interim site construction in St. Catharines.
On September 24th the Seaway Valley Community Health Centre
celebrated its grand opening. Two of the Centre’s first clients, Mr. and
Mrs. Seale cut the ribbon as the Centre’s Executive Director Debbie St.
John-de Wit (far left), Dr. Robert Cushman (to Debbie’s right), AOHC’s
Executive Director Adrianna Tetley (centre back), and other Board,
staff and community members looked on.

6. 6
The Put Food in the Budget
Campaign has been gaining
momentum, particularly with
October’s launch of the Do the
Math Challenge which proposed
that participants live on the
contents of a food bank diet for
a week.
In a dozen communities across
Ontario, several hundred
people - from neighbours to
mayors to municipal council
candidates, from Community
Health Centres to MPPs to
parishes and archbishops - took
on the challenge during the first
weeks October. They were from
a variety of places including
Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge,
Hamilton, London, Stratford,
Woodstock, York Region, Parry
Sound, Muskoka, Sudbury, Ottawa and Cornwall. Inspired by those first participants, other communities also
took on the ‘Challenge’ later in the month including Durham Region, Owen Sound, Haldimand-Norfolk and
Toronto.
The publicity gained by a press conference kick-off at Queen’s Park generated dozens of articles in
newspapers in 30 communities with information about the Challenge, the threats to the Special Diet
Allowance, the inadequacies of social assistance and the centrality of food as a social determinant of health.
CHC board members also gave interviews on CBC while communications staff at AOHC and various CHCs
played a key role in the preparation of written and graphic materials, spreading the word and multiplying
participation. The provincial challenge team, which included AOHC, blogged about their experiences, raising
to unprecedented levels the awareness of these inter-related issues. You can read about many of their
experiences at http://pfib.posterous.com/.
Clearly Community Health Centres were an important ally in the campaign. In addition to providing
communications support and participants, three out of four theme days (The Intersection of Food Insecurity
and Equity, Health, Rurality and Dignity/Disability) took place at or were facilitated by CHCs: Hamilton
Urban Core on Equity, Centretown on Health and South Riverdale on Dignity/Disability.
The event held at the Hamilton Urban Core made it clear that poverty
affects some, such as minority racial groups, disproportionately and is
a major problem in Hamilton’s city core where the Centre is located.
Many identify lack of food as a chronic issue. “Poverty is the biggest
health risk people face,” said Denise Brooks, the Centre’s executive
director.
AOHC and CHCs will be continuing their work on developing a food
policy for Ontario’s Community Health Centres while on Monday
November 15th at 7:00 pm there will be a public meeting in Toronto
for all interested in the next steps of the campaign. The meeting will
take place at the Green Barns at 601 Christie Street in Toronto and
will celebrate the accomplishments of the Challenge team, as well
as provide a clear call to action for the next stage in the campaign to
win an immediate $100 a month increase for every adult in Ontario
receiving social assistance.
Ontario’s Community Health Centres Do the Math
Denise Brooks, Executive Director of the Hamilton Urban Core Community Health Centre
addresses the media and community members at one of the Do the Math Challenge’s
theme days - The Intersection of Food Insecurity and Equity - which was hosted by the
Centre in October.

7. 7
Another Community Health Centres adopts the
“blue C” logo
The Barrie Community Health Centre (BCHC) is the latest Community
Health Centre to adopt the new logo.
Barrie’s transition to the new logo means all three Community Health
Centres in the North Simcoe Muskoka LHIN use the same “blue C” logo.
This will greatly enhance their efforts to communicate the shared CHC success story.
Christine Colcy, the Centre’s Executive Director went on to explain their choice. “Earlier this year, Mary
McNutt facilitated a workshop for our Board and Management Team ‘Strategic Communications in CHCs’. The
workshop acted as a catalyst for a long needed corporate logo change, particularly given the fact 2009 marked
20 years for the BCHC. Historically, the BCHC used a variety of logos and corporate identifiers, none of which
readily connected the local community with the Community Health Centre. As the blue “C” is adopted across
the province, CHCs are easily identifiable as a place where a circle of care is provided around individuals,
families and communities. The BCHC is honoured to adopt the blue “C” where Every One Matters.”
November 17th and December 1st
Advocacy for CHC Boards
This lunch and learn presentation comes to you from the
Association of Ontario Health Centre’s Communications and
Campaigns Manager, Mary MacNutt. Mary will offer suggestions
on communication and advocacy principles and practices that
you can apply to improve your effectiveness in:
Communicating about the CHC Model of Care1.
Making the case for improved resources2.
Forging relationships with potential partners and allies3.
Communicating the importance of addressing the social4.
determinants of health
Handling difficult situations including skepticism/5.
concern about “priority populations” served
If you are wondering how, as a board member, you can be a
communication champion for your centre, this lunch and learn
presentation is for you. Participants will leave this presentation with more confidence in their ability to
communicate about their CHC and knowledge about how to develop a Communications for Advocacy Plan.
November 8th and November 30th
Health Sector 101
Boards need to understand how the CHC Model of Care compares with other models of primary health care.
Join AOHC’s Manager of Policy and Government Relations, Lee McKenna for a lunch and learn introductory
webinar presentation. Participants will gain a very useful understanding of what makes CHCs stand out and
how they fit into Ontario’s overall health care system.
For more information or to register for one of both of these webinars please contact capacitybuilding@aohc.org.
Two new webinars for CHC board members
AOHC’s Strategic Communications and Campaigns
Manager Mary MacNutt, along with Lee McKenna,
Manager of Policy and Government Relations will be
offering two new webinars for CHC board members.
Association of Ontario Health Centres
970 Lawrence Ave. W., Suite 500, Toronto, ON M9A 3B6
Tel: 416-236-2539 Fax: 416-236-0431
E-mail: mail@aohc.org www.aohc.org