Strategic Planning 2025
Client and Community Member Engagement
In 2025, the Rideau Community Health Services' Board of Directors entered into a planning process to refresh our current strategic plan (2021-2026). We welcome the input of our clients and community members though our strategic planning engagement survey, found at the below link.
Link to strategic planning engagement survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5LLF7YK
In addition, we would like to invite clients and community members to an optional virtual engagement session. If you would like to attend one of the virtual sessions, please follow the below links to register.
- Virtual Session 1 - December 16, 2025 from 3:00pm to 4:00pm
- Virtual Session 2 - December 18, 2025 from 11:00am to 12:00pm
We look forward to your thoughts and engagement in developing our new strategic plan which will be effective April 1, 2026.
Strategic Plan Backgrounder
Overview
A strong strategic plan includes many voices. This backgrounder will support your participation in an engagement session to develop the Rideau Community Health Services strategic plan to be implemented April 1, 2026. The backgrounder provides key information about the history, current context, and priorities of Rideau Community Health Services, and what might be considered to frame the strategic planning process. We look forward to your thoughts and engagement in developing Rideau Community Health Services new strategic plan.
About Rideau Community Health Services
Rideau Community Health Services (RCHS) is a non-profit, community-governed community health centre, governed by a 10-member Board of Directors. Our employees provide comprehensive primary care, health promotion, and community services. RCHS works with our community volunteers and partners to provide integrated health and wellness services for various communities throughout Leeds, Grenville, and Lanark counties. A wide range of health promotion and disease prevention programs are available to our communities. Our interdisciplinary teams are supported by a diverse administrative team to provide our programs and services to our clients and community members.
The Corporate Head Office is located in Merrickville. Other sites include Smiths Falls, Brockville, and Perth. We currently work within several partner locations across Lanark, Leeds, and Grenville in the delivery of programs and services. RCHS has a total budget of approximately $11 Million and approximately 90+ full and part time staff.
A Brief History of Rideau Community Health Services:
Rideau Community Health Services (RCHS) is in its 51st year as a non-profit, community-governed health and social service agency. We are the oldest rural community Health Centre in the Province of Ontario. The organization has grown steadily over the years as more programs and services are made available to our clients and community members.
Incorporated in 1974, the Merrickville District Medical Centre became Merrickville District Community Health and Services Centre (MDCHSC) in 1984. At this time the organization officially became a Community Health Centre. In 2011, the name of the corporation changed to Rideau Community Health Services (RCHS), a name which better represents the diverse range of programs and services offered, as well as the vast geography served by the organization.
Rideau Community Health Services Commitment to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Anti-Racism, and Anti-Oppression (IDEAA):
RCHS is committed to ensuring that inclusion, diversity, equity, anti-racism, and anti-oppression (IDEAA) are deliberately woven throughout each of our strategic priorities.
RCHS’s commitment to IDEAA will continue to be part of our strategic plan and our annually updated operational plan. We strive to advance IDEAA in every aspect of our work and all that we do. As part of our commitment to supporting healthy people and healthy communities, we know that every individual must have access to the resources and support they need to thrive. Every person, whether they are living in our communities, involved in our programming, delivering our programming, or accessing the services we provide, all must be safe, respected, and able to achieve their full potential.
The advancement of IDEAA is a long-term commitment which requires hard work and challenging conversations. We will continue to work with our communities and staff to further develop meaningful relationships and support reconciliation in a meaningful way, ensuring our practices are aligned with our individual and collective values and our new strategic plan.
Who we serve?
Rideau Community Health Services serves a diverse range of clients who access our community-centered primary and allied health care, counselling, health promotion, community development, mental health services, diabetes education services, chiropody/foot care, oral health, and other supports in the rural communities across the Counties of Lanark, Leeds and Grenville. Some of our services are also available virtually without geographic restrictions.
Who are our funders?
RCHS is primarily funded by the Ontario Health. Secondary funding comes from the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (MCCSS), in addition to occasional funding grants (e.g. Trillium Foundation), and from public donations.
Our core areas of focus
We are actively involved in monitoring, participating, and advocating on the social determinants of health so that the unique circumstances and needs of rural citizens and rural communities are addressed. Rideau Community Health Services plays a vital role in helping individuals of all ages from communities across our region to achieve optimal health and wellbeing. We do this by helping people in our rural communities have ready access to:
- A multidisciplinary team of primary care providers who provide wraparound care that includes treating health conditions and provide information, education, support, and referrals to manage chronic or complex health conditions close to home.
- Coordinated service planning and systems navigation for health care, mental health, and developmental services.
- A team of qualified Social Workers who provide mental health counselling.
- Group programs to help people learn new skills or refine existing skills to improve their own health and wellbeing, provide peer support, develop social networks, and get more actively involved in community life.
- Community support services to help clients and community members navigate systems and access resources such as food supports, housing information, transportation, and income supports in addition to providing assistance with completing forms, application, and searching for additional resources.
- Community-focused clinics led by Community Health Workers to support access to provincial and federal identification (such as birth certificates, SIN cards, health cards) and navigating complex systems applications such as applying for the Canadian Dental Care Plan.
- A qualified team of Dental Hygienists to maintain healthy dental hygiene and support access to dental services in the community for adults and seniors with low income or no insurance.
- Smoking cessation program and supports to help support individuals who wish to quit smoking and vaping.
- High-risk Chiropodist services for advanced treatment of feet that have been severely affected by chronic conditions and access to trained Foot Care nurses for diabetic clients who require routine foot care.
- Virtual care services (ie Telemedicine) for clients who have transportation or other barriers in accessing out-of-town specialist services or other medical appointments, which include in home and on-site visits.
- A team of Registered Dietitians to provide nutrition advice and counselling, promote healthy lifestyle choices and skills to prepare cost-effective and healthy meals. This can be via 1:1 appointments or within group settings.
- Regional Diabetes Education Programming run by a multidisciplinary team of Registered Nurses and Dietitians to provide education and support to manage diabetes and pre-diabetic conditions.
Much of the work we do is accomplished through collaborative partnerships with countless organizations, networks, and partnerships.
Our strategic directions for 2021-2026
Our current strategic plan was focused on the following strategic directions. We have made significant progress on these directions.
- Working Together to Improve Health and Wellbeing
- We will invest in and strengthen our community partnerships to improve the health of all members of our communities.
- We will advocate for enhanced services and programs to meet the needs of our communities.
- We will work with our partners on the Ontario Health Team to improve access to services in our communities.
- Working Together to Support Innovation and Community Connection
- We will seek innovative ways to use technology to improve our use of data and electronic access to health services in Lanark, Leeds, and Grenville.
- We will communicate with community members and partners in different ways to deepen their connection with Rideau Community Health Services.
- Working Together for Person- and Community-Centered Care
- We will ensure that programs and services delivered meet the needs of the individual, are focused on high quality and are equitable, inclusive, effective, and efficient.
- We will work with our community partners to ensure that individuals receive seamless access to services and the level and quality of services they need regardless of where they live in the communities.
The current state of Rideau Community Health Services
Our dedicated teams of staff, volunteers and partners value the services and supports we provide to the clients and communities. As we plan for our future directions, here are some current issues to consider.
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Current Issues impacting Rideau Community Health Services |
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Listening to our partners
We value client, community, staff, and partner feedback and continually gather this in a variety of ways to inform our priorities, our practices, and our advocacy efforts. Past feedback from clients, community members, staff, and partners has been invaluable to shaping our directions and services. We look forward to learning more from you to help inform our future directions. Thank you in advance for your time and support.