Community Healthcare Support Playbook and Toolkit

A roadmap for local communities to support their healthcare and emergency personnel

Community leaders, with support from values-aligned partners in the public and private

sectors, gathered on June 11th, 2024, to launch the Community Healthcare System Support Playbook (CHSSP). Led by the Saunders Family Foundation, in collaboration with Thrive Social Services

Society and Westplan Consulting Group and supported by the Ministry of Health, this community-driven initiative empowers local communities to retain, attract and support healthcare workers.

Access to quality healthcare is a fundamental right, and the initiative founders invite all local leaders, from the government to business owners, to implement this project according to their local needs. This is not an offloading of responsibility by the government. The project empowers communities to address their primary healthcare needs. Some stressors impacting healthcare and emergency workers are not primarily or only the responsibility of provincial or federal governments but rather the purview of local governments and communities, including housing, transportation, and other issues.

The Playbook was developed in collaboration with physicians, nurses, healthcare workers, local governments and business leaders. The Ministry of Health contributed funding toward the next step of the project – a toolkit – that describes how to implement steps and actions within communities. The release of the toolkit is anticipated for fall 2024.

Access the Playbook & Toolkit