Sudbury District Nurse Practitioner Clinics (SDNPC) opened its doors to patients during in July 2007. The first clinic site is located on Riverside Drive near the downtown core in the City of Greater Sudbury. A second site opened 16km away in the town of Lively in 2010. The clinics are a bold step forward in primary health-care delivery in Ontario with a model of care that utilizes Nurse Practitioners in a way that allows them to practice to their full scope. SDNPC recognizes Nurse Practitioners contribution to the health-care system as vital and necessary if Ontario is to solve the current primary health care crisis.
NPs complete patient intakes, physical assessments and refer patients for diagnostic testing. They diagnose and prescribe medication for a variety of illnesses and monitor stable chronic diseases. Many patients will only need to see their Nurse Practitioner. However, all members of the interprofessional team see patients and are available for consultation with the Nurse Practitioners. The clinics have medical secretaries/receptionists as well as an Administrative Lead who support the efficient functioning of the clinics ensuring that health care providers can focus on providing patient care.
Orphan patients often fear ending up in the hospital, or even becoming an ALC statistic, by nature of the episodic care they receive at walk-in clinics and overcrowded Emergency Departments. NP-led clinics are part of the solution to increasing access to health care for those orphan patients in our communities.
Sudbury District Nurse Practitioner Clinics is a not for profit corporation and has a mixed community/provider Board of Directors.
The opening of SDNPC was possible due to funding from the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, and support from Sudbury area Nurse Practitioners, the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario, the Nurse Practitioners' Association of Ontario, the City of Greater Sudbury, Chapleau Health Services and The Township of Chapleau.
Key Highlights:
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Minister of Health and Long Term Care George Smitherman at Grand Opening August 2007A unique interprofessional team approach allows SDNPC to take on complex patients whose health care needs may be too difficult for a solo provider to manage.
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SDNPC offers placements for NP, RN, MD and medical secretary students.
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SDNPC raises the profile of the City of Greater Sudbury as the site of a new and innovative health-care delivery model.
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SDNPC provides bilingual services.
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SDNPC answers to a community Board of Directors that supports the vision of the clinics and full implementation of the NP role.
