Update: 12:42 p.m. Wednesday
It appears the Kemptville Health Unit office may not be closing its doors after all.
In an update on Facebook, North Grenville Mayor Nancy Peckford says Westport Mayor Robin Jones, the representative for the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville on the Southeast Public Health Unit Board, was successful at a meeting on Wednesday in getting members to agree to rescind recommendations to close the local office and other satellite offices.
Mayor Peckford says the board has agreed to establishing a robust process to determine criteria and consultation for any potential closures in the future.
She adds that at this stage, the health unit’s announcement this past Friday to close the Kemptville Health Unit office does not stand.
Peckford also clarifies in her post that Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark had no involvement and were not aware of the closure decision.
She finishes her post by saying that residents voices and vigilance are key and she’s asking for any concerns to be emailed to her directly so that she can share it with the health unit board.
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North Grenville Mayor Nancy Peckford says she strongly opposes any proposal to close the Kemptville Health Unit office.
Southeast Public Health announced last Friday that it will be closing its local office, one of eight such closures, come next March with cost savings cited as one of the main reasons why.
In a letter to the health unit board, Peckford says closing the satellite office would have far-reaching and negative consequences for one of Ontario’s fastest-growing rural communities and for the broader Leeds and Grenville region.
She says that the Kemptville Health Unit plays a critical role in child and family health, immunization and communicable disease control, environmental public health and health equity.
Peckford says they are concerned that the potential closure is being undertaken without sufficient municipal consultation, a comprehensive impact assessment, or consideration of operational efficiencies that could be achieved through partnership rather than withdrawal.
She finishes the letter by formally requesting disclosure of the data that led to this decision, as well as reconsideration and reversal by the health unit board of the announced closure
based upon all of her concerns.
