CP@clinic program recognized with the Ontario Health System Quality and Innovation Award

Gina Agarwal’s Community Paramedicine at Clinic (CP@clinic) program of research was recognized with the Ontario Health System Quality and Innovation Award in the Improved Population Health category. The awards are a partnership of the University of Toronto Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Ontario Health, the Ontario Hospital Association and the Ontario Medical Association and are independently adjudicated by a panel of judges from the health system.

This award followed a groundbreaking publication in JAMA Network Open (refer to this infographic) on the impacts of CP@clinic on health system utilization beyond EMS calls; specifically, increasing primary care and home care visits and reducing transfers to long term care among social housing residents. It also had an impact on antihypertensive medication initiation. These findings demonstrate the broader impact of the CP@clinic program on the healthcare system.

The CP@clinic program continues to scale up and out. The program piloted a smoking cessation component in two communities – Sault Ste Marie, Ontario and Surrey, British Columbia. VIP Research Lab team members travelled to these communities in Jan and Feb 2026 to do on-site data collection (surveys and key informant interviews [KIIs]) with support from other team members conducting remote KIIs. 2026 marks a full year of implementation of its expansion into Quebec, in partnership with Laval University and Dessercom (paramedic service). Eight paramedics have been trained to implement the program in 4 social housing buildings.

PI: Gina Agarwal
Contact: Francine Marzanek (mlefebv@mcmaster.ca)