NYTHP brings health and social services to 200 women and newcomers in North York
- NYTHP Admin
- Apr 24
- 3 min read
For Women’s Health Month, North York Toronto Health Partners Ontario Health Team (NYTHP OHT) partnered with Better Living Health and Community Services, North York General Hospital, North York Family Health Team, VHA Home Healthcare and Carefirst to deliver health services and tailored community resources directly to local women and newcomers.
What are CHIFs?
Community Health & Information Fairs (CHIFs) are co-designed with community partners to improve health and wellness in high-needs neighbourhoods in North York. They are built off the experience gained from delivering the COVID-19 vaccination clinics.
NYTHP OHT developed the CHIFs to support a wide range of health and social needs, focusing on educating community members and connecting them to local services.
March 26th, 2025 CHIF
This CHIF included a blood pressure and blood glucose clinic, a mobile cancer screening clinic and 13 local partners to deliver clinical services and resources to 200 community members.
The event was hosted at Better Living’s Seniors Active Living Centre, reinforcing the importance of delivering care in the community. As a community provider in North York for over 50 years, Better Living has been committed to helping individuals live well—safely, independently, and with dignity — wherever they call home.
Female health care practitioners also provided on-site HPV tests (cervical cancer screening) to six patients on the Carefirst Mobile Health Unit, which offers a private space for testing, as well as one referral for a Fecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) for colon cancer screening. With our partners at North York General Breast Imaging Centre, we also provided 18 referrals for mammograms for breast cancer screening.
This CHIF also featured 13 local partners who engaged with community members about resources ranging from clinical services, settlement and legal services, prenatal and sexual health resources, housing and career supports, transportation services and Scotiabank’s StartRight™ Program, which provides newcomers with banking basics needed for financial success.
NYTHP OHT organized transportation to the CHIF for students from Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) programs who were able to connect with social services and resources in multiple languages. This is a key example of how partnering with community organizations allows NYTHP OHT to offer services to members of our community who need them the most.
"It is so nice to be here and learn about all these services in one spot. I try to use Google but often have trouble finding the information I need, which is why the CHIFs are so helpful."
This CHIF was also an opportunity for NYTHP OHT to recognize the generous grant of $500,000 over a three-year period from Scotiabank. The grant will help our OHT continue providing low-barrier access to preventative care through the CHIFs and connect community members to the care they need at the right place and the right time. We are grateful for the support of the North York General Foundation team and for their continued partnership.
In the News - OMNI TV Arabic Focus
Tala Abou Dabousa from OMNI Television attended our event and interviewed Dr. Everton Gooden, President and CEO at North York General Hospital, Dr. Danielle Manis, Chief of the Department of Family and Community Medicine at North York General Hospital, and Community Health Ambassadors Teresina Stanichevsky and Ala'a Aldeen Al-Maamari.
New health services for newcomers in North York
A unique initiative to expand healthcare access for immigrants and marginalized groups.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank all of our partners, staff, volunteers and champions for their support, trust and enthusiasm. Thank you for helping us make the March 26, 2025 CHIF happen.
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