Horizon brings team-based care to Hampton, ensuring every resident will get a primary care provider

$2.2M investment also helps establish the region’s first dedicated allied health centre
to support patients throughout Hampton, Quispamsis, and Rothesay

(HAMPTON) – A $2.2 million provincial investment has enabled Horizon Health Network (Horizon) to bring collaborative care to Hampton and establish the area’s first dedicated allied health centre to serve the region’s greater health care needs.

Just weeks after opening, the new Hampton Medical Centre has already begun onboarding patients from the provincial registry and is well on track to connect every unattached patient in Hampton to a primary care provider within the next 12 to 18 months.

Supporting the work of the Hampton Medical Centre – and every other clinic in the area – is Horizon’s first dedicated allied health centre in the region. The centre brings allied health, addiction, and mental health services together under one roof to support patients and medical teams throughout Hampton, Quispamsis, and Rothesay.

“This investment demonstrates what’s possible when we build health care with a regional perspective,” says Ashley Calvert, Horizon’s Vice President, Community. “By pairing team-based primary care with a regional allied health centre, we’re expanding access to health care, strengthening local care teams, and helping more communities get connected to the services they need.”

There are 1,509 Hampton residents currently registered on the provincial waitlist. Once the Hampton Medical Centre onboards every patient from this list, they will expand their reach and begin onboarding patients from surrounding communities.

For long-standing community physicians Dr. Douglas Hall, Dr. Cory Dickson, and Dr. Scott Fenwick the introduction of collaborative care represents the realization of a vision they have shared for years: creating a place where their neighbours can access the health care services they need, close to home.

“My colleagues and I are incredibly fortunate to live and work in Hampton, and it means so much to be part of something that will make a lasting difference in our community,” says Dr. Hall. “For years, we’ve dreamed of creating a single place where people could access care, and we are deeply grateful to Horizon, the Town of Hampton, and everyone who has come together to make this shared vision a reality.”

Three new physicians, Dr. Jared Mullin, Dr. Sam Palmer and Dr. Jamie Clark, two new licensed practical nurses, and a clinic manager have recently joined the Hampton Medical Centre. They will work alongside the centre’s three existing physicians, registered nurse, three medical office assistants and collaborate with a respiratory therapist and diabetes educator who provide services to the team.

A dietitian, an occupational therapist and a physiotherapist have recently joined the allied health team, and recruitment is underway for a social worker and a medical office assistant. The team will be co-located and work alongside Horizon’s Addiction and Mental Health Services.

“This is what it looks like when health-care professionals come together to build a solution for their own community,” said Premier Susan Holt. “The doctors here in Hampton saw an opportunity to do things differently, and they built a team that will improve access to care for people in this community. We’re seeing this model help us attract new physicians and create more capacity for primary care across New Brunswick. When we support local solutions like this, we’re making it easier for people to get the care they need and for health-care professionals to build their careers here.”

The Hampton Medical Centre operates out of a brand-new 11,000-square-foot clinic which includes 17 exam rooms and a dedicated space for medical education. The clinic will serve as a teaching site for medical students, residents, nurse practitioner students, and more.

“Together, these clinics are an example of how, when health-care professionals come together with a shared goal, great things can happen,” said Health Minister John Dornan. “The physicians behind this clinic recognized an opportunity to better support their community and worked together to make it a reality. The result will be better access to care in the community and stronger support for health-care providers. We’re proud to support this type of local leadership and innovation.”

About Family Health Teams

Horizon’s transformative primary care strategy will establish Family Health Teams across the province, aiming to match all New Brunswickers who live in areas served by Horizon with a local team of collaborative health care providers by 2029. This best practice approach will provide better access and an improved patient experience by bringing together different health care practitioners with a variety of competencies, skills, and experiences to address the needs of the patients they serve. Family Health Team members will include a range of physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, allied health professionals and medical office assistants.

Currently, 12 Horizon Family Health Teams are in various stages of implementation, including Fredericton North, Tantramar, Carleton North, Nordin (Miramichi), Mapleton (Moncton), St. Stephen, Saint John North End, Fundy Health Centre, Nackawic Health Centre, Saint Andrews Wellness Centre, Perth-Andover, and Hampton. In addition, Horizon’s existing Community Health Centres are undergoing improvements and transformations to increase access and optimize capacity to serve patients within the Family Health Team model.

New Brunswickers who do not have a primary care provider should continue to register with the provincial unattached patient registry (NB Health Link). As new local Family Health Teams are established, New Brunswickers registered on this list will be contacted and matched with a team in their community. Horizon will share regular progress updates at horizonnb.ca/primary-care. 

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