HOW TO ACCESS HEALTH CARE
In this section you’ll find tons of practical information and guidelines on how to access a doctor and get a health card. What to do before, during, and after appointments to ensure your needs are met, as well as specific prompts to help you advocate for yourself!
REMINDER: There is NO easy “ADULT” button!

DISCLAIMER: HOW TO USE THIS INFO

Just like “growing up” doesn’t happen all at once, it’s important to remember that transitioning to adult services is also not a one-time thing – it’s all a process.
This page contains plenty of helpful tips, but we know that this is a lot of info to take in, so we want YOU to know that you do NOT need to learn it all at once! There’s no need to rush yourself or feel overwhelmed by all the things you COULD start doing TODAY to help prepare for the transition from youth to adult services.

Instead, we encourage you to take a skim, jot down anything you think might be easy to start on or any questions that come up right away. Then, don’t be afraid to just bookmark this page and come back to it later as many times as you like and so you can do things slowly, one step at a time.
Practical Tips for Accessing Care

1. Finding a Doctor
2. Getting a Health Card


3. Preparing for Appointments
4. During the Visit


5. After the Visit

1. Finding a Doctor
Family physicians, also known as General practitioners (GP) or primary care providers, offer continued care for your physical and emotional well-being. Family doctors are able to diagnose and prescribe medication as well as refer you to other professionals.
Fast Facts about Primary Healthcare Providers

Seeing your GP and most necessary testing is covered (with a valid health card) for permanent Ontario residents. Some fees may apply (e.g., doctor’s notes, filling prescriptions) depending on the GP or clinic.

Nurse Practitioners (NPs) can also act as your primary care provider, and provide many of the same services as a GP!

GPs and NPs are the guardians of your medical file and your ticket to accessing other services within the healthcare system (e.g., specialists)!

Start Online
1) Sign up on the Health Care Connect website to get help in finding a GP or NP taking new patients in your community.
2) Search for local family health clinics and contact them yourself to see if they are taking new patients. We recommend using the College of Physicians and Surgeons Search Function or forums such as Reddit. You could start your search by typing “clinics accepting new patients in (city)” for example.

Call Around
Call clinics directly. Make a list of clinics in your area and start calling the main phone numbers. When you get through to a receptionist, keep it quick and simple: identify yourself and ask “Is your clinic accepting new clients?”
Self-advocacy tip: If they say they are not currently accepting new patients, do not hang up! Ask “Do you know of any other practice who is accepting new clients?”

Go Through Groups
1) If you are a student in a college or university, you can ask other students, residence fellows and your campus’s resource health centres about what care may be available through your institution.
2) Some jobs or community associations may offer support (e.g., Employee Assistance Programs) that can help you access some healthcare services or wellness initiatives (e.g., counselling). Although this may not lead directly to acquiring a GP, it can help if you need support through the process overall or in other ways.

Ask Around
Ask friends or family members if they know of a doctor or clinic who is accepting new patients. This might seem like a last resort, but this can also be a helpful way to identify how others have secured their own primary health providers.

Make Sure You’re Covered
Walk-in Clinics: If you are on waitlists for a family doctor, but still need care in the meantime, going to a walk-in clinic is your next best option. Be careful about going to a walk-in clinic if you already have a family doctor. While your choice of and comfort with the individual healthcare professional is important, some clinics will not be okay with seeing patients who are also going to walk-in clinics.
Switching providers: If you already have a family doctor, but would like to switch, it’s important to know that you must take yourself OFF of your current GP’s patient list BEFORE being able to secure a new one. This can cause some extra delays in receiving care, so we recommend caution when looking to switch as it can be problematic to rely on walk-in clinics for consistent care (e.g., renewal of necessary medications).
Call ServiceOntario for more info (1-888-218-9929)

2. Getting a Health Card
OHIP stands for Ontario Health Insurance Plan. You need a valid OHIP card (a.k.a. a health card) to access public health services in Ontario.
OHIP covers part or all of the following services:
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Visits to doctors
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Hospital visits and stays
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Medical (e.g., morning after pill) or surgical abortions
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Eligible dental surgery (i.e., in hospital)
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Some optometry (eye-health services) depending on your age and specific medical conditions
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Part of podiatry appointments and tests (i.e., for foot-health services), up to a certain $$ amount
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Ambulance services (usually a $45 co-pay)
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Travel for health services if you live in northern Ontario


OHIP does not cover:
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prescription drugs provided in non-hospital settings (e.g. antibiotics prescribed by your family doctor)
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dental services provided in a dentist’s office
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eyeglasses, contact lenses
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laser eye surgery
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cosmetic surgery
As coverage may shift, take a look at the Ontario Government website for more details.
How to get a Health Card

Complete the appropriate application process:
1) To apply for a new health card, you must complete the registration form
2) If expired, you can renew your health card online or in-person
3) If your name and address has not changed, you can replace an unexpired lost, stolen or damaged photo health card by calling ServiceOntario at 1-800-664-8988.

Gather your 3 Identified Documents (IDs):
1) an original ID that proves your Canadian citizenship or OHIP-eligible immigration status (e.g., Canadian Passport)
2) an original, printed or digital/electronic ID that proves you live in Ontario (e.g., school transcript, phone bill)
3) an original one that confirms your identity (e.g., driver’s licence, student ID card)

Go to a ServiceOntario Location
1) Getting a health care must be done in person. Find your closest ServiceOntario location
2) Take your 3 documents and completed application form to ServiceOntario or call first to ensure you have everything you need
Pro Tip: You can always call ahead to confirm ServiceOntario opening hours, that you’ve got everything you need, or to request accessibility accommodations (e.g., sign language interpreter) 2-3 days before you go. Toll-free: 1-800-267-8097.

3. Preparing for Appointments

Identify what you want to share beforehand
Write down some key points, questions or concerns that you would like to discuss with your care provider. Having things written down in point form or letter format can be helpful to feel more prepared and comfortable going in to an appointment.

Book more time in advance
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Don’t be afraid to let your care provider(s) know if you need more time. As doctor’s are often very busy, it’s a good idea to let them know in advance if you will need more time with them.
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Talk to your doctor or reception (in person or by phone) when booking your next appointment and ask for a longer appointment. They may ask you why you need more time, so make sure you think about what you will want to talk about in advance of booking.

Lean on your supports
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Ask to practice with a friend or someone you trust before your next appointment.
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Ask a support person (could be a friend or family member) to come along to an appointment with you to help keep your thoughts in order and, in some cases, to help communicate what you need
Pro Tip: If you ask a support person to come with you to an appointment, always make sure to talk with them beforehand so they know how best to help you. For example, if you are expecting them to speak for you, that’s something you both need be comfortable with. Or if you want them there for moral support and help take notes so you can focus on talking to your doctor, let them know!

4. During the Visit

Ask Questions, Remember the Answers
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You may be feeling a lot of emotions about your health in general or specific things you’re going through, and that is totally normal! It’s always helpful to let the doctor know if you are feeling nervous or anxious or if you need a moment to breathe collect your thoughts.
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Make sure that you are aware of your needs and can clearly articulate what you are asking for. Clear, straightforward questions help (e.g., what should I know about X medication? What does it do inside the body and what are the side effects?)
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Most people remember only about half of the information given to them. When you ask your questions, make sure you have a notebook or your phone to take note of the answers.

Advocate for Your Needs
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In the fast paced mental health system or in a workplace, sometimes our voices may not be heard or practitioners are sometimes so used to doing things in their own way. It doesn’t mean that this is the right way for you.
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Try to stay calm and clearly explain how they can help you better (e.g., “I really need you to hear my concerns and talk through them so that I can feel confident in the treatment plan we choose”).
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If your doctor or primary care provider cannot help you with an issue, kindly as them to refer you to another specialist or service (i.e., sometimes doctors will make referrals themselves, but other times you have to ask).
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This is a good time to share any research you’ve done that can back up the kind of support you need or treatment options you’d like to explore.

Understand Your Treatment Plan
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Make sure you have a clear idea of your treatment plan. If you do not understand something, ask your health care team to explain it in other ways or to provide examples.
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If there are several medications to take or other complicated treatment parts to follow, ask your health care team for a written copy for you to have.

5. After the Visit

Review and Follow Recommendations
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Review (or make) a list of the recommendations given to you and try to follow the advice.
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Try to set yourself up for success right away. Shortly after the appointment, you could: program any new/follow-up appointments into your calendar, don’t wait too long to fill prescriptions, set reminders to carry out certain parts of your treatment plan, plan a time for yourself to follow up on any referrals, etc.,
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On your list, you can also identify any challenges or barriers that could make it difficult to follow your treatment plan (e.g., cost of prescription drugs).

Seek Support to Follow Your Treatment Plan
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Don’t be afraid to contact your health care team between visits with any concerns (e.g., if you didn’t understand something your doctor said, if you had an important question you didn’t have time to ask).
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Reach out to other supports that can help you overcome or manage challenges (e.g., some social assistance programs can help with affording prescription drugs, Community Health Centres can provide additional health promotion and support programs).

Look at Other Options
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You may not always feel totally heard or overly comfortable in all appointments. You may not agree with everything your healthcare team recommends. It is also okay to just feel overwhelmed by it all sometimes.
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Still, its important to have a trusting relationship with your healthcare provider(s). If you have concerns, you have the right to seeking a second opinion and all clinics have a feedback process.
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At the end of the day, your doctors cannot always provide the exact care you might need. This does NOT mean you should give up, or stop advocating for your needs, BUT it may mean that you must broaden your search to find other options to support your health and wellness.
Pro Tip: If you’re not sure you want to share feedback or concerns directly with your doctor, we recommend quietly asking reception what the clinic’s anonymous feedback process is. If you are uncomfortable asking in-person, you can also sometimes give feedback online or call without sharing your name.
Other Resources
Health and wellness, especially in the adult world, can feel like a big rabbit hole of overwhelming (and sometimes conflicting) information and options. It’s okay to not always know what to do or feel confident in what advice to take at different times in your life.
The important thing to remember is that there are some really awesome CREDIBLE resources out there that ARE there for you to turn to whenever you are feeling lost, confused or need support!
