The chair of Huron County's Board of Health says a proposal to merge the province's 36 health units to conform with the boundaries of the Local Health Integration Networks is a long way from being established.
Tyler Hessel says he has attended a couple of meetings where the idea has been discusses and there is very little support among the 36 health units.
"There was a session that was held at the end of September with regards to that and all 36 health units were invited," he says. "Of the 36 health units that were at the September presentation, only a couple were supportive of it and they happened to be on the original document."
The proposed merger would reduce the number of health units to 14, which is the same number as the LHINs.
Hessel points out the Southwest LHIN includes Grey, Bruce, Huron and Perth counties as well as parts of Middlesex and Oxford, with its head office in London. He doesn't believe that mix of urban and rural is practical or appropriate.
Within that LHIN, Huron and Perth form a sub-LHIN and Hessel says their merger does make sense because they have common issues, and they've chosen their partner rather than having a merger forced on them.
