The local public health unit has earned high grades from the Ontario Council on Community Health Accreditation.
The OCCHA accreditation report presented the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit with an unconditional, three-year award, which was announced to the board of health in March.
OCCHA board chair Penny Lavalley praised the health unit for its commitment to accreditation and continuous quality improvement.
Throughout the accreditation surveys report, the provincial council noted uniformly satisfactory or high levels of compliance with the peer-set accreditation standards.
Simcoe Muskoka Medical Officer of Health Dr. Charles Gardner says those high standards of performance served the community well during the enormous challenges we have faced in the last two years, with the H1N1 flu virus and the G8/20 summit and the tornado that struck our region at the same time.
Some suggestions and recommendations were made in a few areas where there was room for improvement. The health unit will need to improve the consistency of health and safety inspections at its seven offices. One other suggestion was for the board of health to complete the scheduled review of bylaws and policies and procedures.
