Heart Health Resource Centre / Centre de ressources

Ontario Heart Health Network

The Ontario Heart Health Network (OHHN) facilitates networking, sharing and learning. OHHN facilitates partnerships between practitioners in the field, the funders (Ministry of Health and Long- Term Care), the researchers (Canadian Heart Health Initiative: Ontario Project) and the support agencies (e.g., HHRC).

About OHHN

The goal of OHHN is to promote and support opportunities for those involved in the planning and delivery of community-based heart health / chronic disease programs to learn, share and network with their peers.

OHHN Activities

OHHN facilitates opportunities for networking, learning and sharing between the thirty-seven groups involved in the Ontario Heart Health Program.
OHHN hosts two to three meetings per year and a bi-annual conference.
OHHN provides financial support to six regional heart health networks (Central West (CW), Central East (CE), Eastern, North West (NW), North East (NE) and South West (SW)) across the province. The regional networks meet between six and twelve times per year.
An Executive Committee, composed of a representative from each of the six regional networks, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario (HSFO), the Canadian Heart Health Initiative: Ontario Project
(CHHIOP), the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC), the Heart Health Resource Centre (HHRC) and a member-at-large, governs the OHHN.

Regional Networks

The six regional networks provide opportunities for Heart Health Coordinators to support each other, plan joint/regional activities and share more detailed information than can occur at the provincial OHHN level. The regional networks appear to be fostering a learning organization culture among the Heart Health Coordinators thus accelerating the pace of learning for those involved in community-based heart health programming.

OHHN Executive Committee

The OHHN Executive Committee provides leadership to the OHHN. The objectives of the Executive are:

to develop and oversee implementation of an annual work plan for OHHN, including two network meetings per year;
to develop an annual budget and investigate ongoing funding sources for OHHN;
to convene and oversee taskforces and working groups as required;
to facilitate and support the development of regional heart health networks;
to ensure meetings are accessible to members across the province;
to work with heart health partners
to influence decision makers regarding provincial policies and support mechanisms needed to promote heart health in every community;
to work closely with HHRC in its capacity as secretariat to OHHN; and
to represent OHHN on provincial committees that promote/support heart health.

The Heart Health Resource Centre (HHRC) acts as a secretariat to OHHN. In this capacity, HHRC provides $10,000 funding annually to OHHN; maintains the membership list, coordinates mailings to members and co-ordinates logistics for the Executive Committee (e.g., distributes the agenda, arranges teleconferences etc.) and the OHHN meetings.

The Terms of Reference for the OHHN Executive Committee and a list of committee members is available online.

For more information about OHHN activities, please contact the following:

Heather Keam
Interim Chair
Phone: (519) 426-6170 ext.3208
E-mail: heather.keam@hnhu.org

Helen Risteen
Interim Vice-Chair
Phone: (519) 881-1920 ext.469
E-mail: hristeen@publichealthgreybruce.on.ca