Partners Community Health (PCH) is working together with community partners to design new care models to meet the growing needs of an aging population. In Mississauga and West Toronto, PCH is creating integrated solutions that help older adults access care closer to home, reduce hospital pressures, and improve quality of life.
Established in 2021, PCH operates Wellbrook Place — two long-term care homes and an Integrated Seniors’ Hub. Built by Trillium Health Partners (THP) as part of the Government of Ontario’s Accelerated Build Pilot Program in November 2023, the homes and hub will be part of a broader Integrated Aging Campus of Care. This campus model will expand to include Mississauga’s first hospice, creating a continuum of services that better supports older adults through every stage of aging.
PCH was created in response to growing system pressures such as emergency department demand, hospital capacity challenges, and the increasing complexity of older adults’ care needs. By engaging residents, families, caregivers, and providers, PCH developed a model that addresses both individual and system-level needs, ensuring smoother transitions and more connected care.
Photo caption: Wellbrook Place operated by Partners Community Health.
Unique services at Wellbrook Place demonstrate this innovation in action. For example, the adjacent THP South Mississauga Dialysis Centre allows long-term care residents requiring hemodialysis to receive treatment onsite, avoiding the physical strain and disruption of travelling to a hospital. Similarly, a 24-bed Behavioural Support Unit helps residents with dementia and mental health needs transition successfully into regular care environments.
Technology and creativity are also central to PCH's approach. Tools like the Lucynt Magic Tables promote cognitive engagement and social connection, while pilot projects such as AI-powered nutritional assessment are reducing waste and informing future care practices. These initiatives improve resident well-being and generate insights for the broader health system.
Beyond long-term care, PCH's Integrated Seniors' Hub is reimagining community-based support. With funding from the Ontario Government's Ministry of Long-Term Care Community Access to Long-Term Care (CALTC), programs like Spend the Day With Us help older adults stay active, connected, and independent. These programs combine clinical care, personal support and social activities such as fitness classes and music. The Hub also plays a key role in the Mississauga Health Seniors Navigation Portal, which connects older adults to the right supports. This helps prevent avoidable hospital admissions and enables more people to age at home.
A unique example of this community-based support is the HealthPod, a first-of-its-kind, high-tech, self-contained clinic located within the Integrated Seniors’ Hub. Designed by THP’s Institute for Better Health and operated by THP’s Insight Health Solutions, the HealthPod addresses one of the biggest barriers in community care — limited access to specialists. Through virtual appointments with THP-credentialed physicians and specialists, patients can receive care that is often unavailable without long waits or travel. Equipped with tools such as a blood pressure cuff, heart rate monitor, rhythm ECG, and oxygen monitor, the HealthPod supports comprehensive assessments that can be completed close to home. In addition to the HealthPod, Wellbrook Place residents and seniors in the community can access specialized geriatric care through the Geriatric Services Program.
These services ensure that older adults can access geriatric and internal medicine expertise that is often a barrier in community-based services, helping to fill a critical gap in the continuum of care for seniors.
PCH’s vision is long-term: to be a trusted partner in a connected system where older adults can access high-quality, integrated, and personalized care throughout their aging journey. This includes wraparound caregiver supports, workforce development, and closer partnerships with hospitals and community providers to reduce avoidable emergency visits.
For health care professionals, PCH offers a blueprint of what’s possible when collaboration, creativity, and innovation guide system transformation. By investing in integrated, community-based models of care, Ontario hospitals and partners like PCH are showing how to build a more sustainable health system while ensuring older adults can thrive in the places they call home.