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Municipal Staff & Partners

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Health Unit Working with Municipalities

We strive to work with our communities to protect and promote the health of people and the environment through public health leadership and partnership. One way we are doing this is by having staff dedicated to support and partner with each or our municipalities.

The Health Unit along with our local municipal partners share common goals in creating:

  • Places and spaces that cultivate belonging, inclusion, connectedness and engagement
  • A well-planned built environment that supports healthy behaviours and choices
  • Vibrant social environments where people can live, work, learn and play
  • Conditions in which all citizens, no matter where they are in life, can thrive, now and in the future

In working together “upstream” on overall population health we are likely to achieve a greater impact on the health of our communities, reduce the burden downstream on the health care system and help to make the healthy choices easier.

Municipal Public Health Nurses

Each municipality has an assigned Public Health Nurse (PHN) who works in the municipality’s geographic area. The Municipal Public Health Nurse Liaison (PHN Liaison) is a health unit navigator, knowledge broker, capacity builder, facilitator, and champion for health in the community. how Municipal Public Health Nurses work as part of an inter-professional team including but not limited to health promoters, registered dietitians, public health dental professionals and public health inspectors.

See this recording for a description of the work the Municipal Public Health Nurse does Municipal Public Health Nurse Liaison Role Presentation

Kathryn Allwright-Casselden (she/her), RN, BNSc, MNSc

Public Health Nurse

[email protected]


Joanne Desormeaux (she/her), RN, BNSc

Public Health Nurse

[email protected]



Kimberley Marshall (she/her), RN, BScN

Public Health Nurse

[email protected]



Danielle Shewfelt (she/her), RN, BNSc

Public Health Nurse

[email protected]



Counties:

Municipalities

Local Data

Need reports on local data to help with a funding application or for planning? We also have dashboards you can search for local statistics Canada information on our local Municipalities and Counties or you can contact your Municipal Public Health Nurse (PHN) if you need support. See list above to find your area Public Health Nurse. 

The Rural Ontario Institute also has dashboards and factsheets available related to population, age, immigration and other demographics that can also be accessed here.

For Youth Data, you will find Lanark County survey results from grade 10 students. Survey Findings – Planet Youth Lanark You can click on the “Municipal Findings” button to look at a particular Municipality within Lanark County

Age-Friendly Communities

In an age-friendly community, the policies, services and structures related to the physical and social environment are designed to help seniors “age actively.” In other words, the community is set up to help seniors live safely, enjoy good health and stay involved. Age-Friendly Rural and Remote Communities: A Guide




The “Older Adults of Leeds, Grenville and Lanark” A Review by Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit, is an assessment of the services and supportive factors available or needed for older adults in Leeds, Grenville and Lanark that will help maintain the health of older adults and make our communities more age friendly. We have organized this information using the WHO Global Age-Friendly Cities report themes.

This report is designed to be used as a tool to support the work of community stakeholders to:

  • support program development
    • assist with prioritization of work and programming
    • be used as a tool for writing reports, letters of support, proposals.
    • be used in part (e.g., by theme) or as a whole for an overall Age Friendly approach.

Please note: The pandemic occurred at the very last stages of developing this review. We had to pause this work for 3 years but feel this information collected prior to 2020 is still valuable. We made minor updates, but this information does not reflect the impact of the pandemic specifically.

Climate Change Action

Municipalities play a major role in climate change mitigation and adaptation. There are many resources available to support municipalities with mitigation and adaptation actions. See the resources below and contact your Municipal Public Health Nurse Liaison at [email protected] to consult on climate change planning.



Municipal/Public Health Virtual Call Recordings

We host regular 30 minute Zoom calls on a variety of topics that are designed for Municipal staff and council. In these calls we present information that may be helpful and there is an opportunity to discuss and ask questions. Recordings of these calls are below and can be viewed and shared with those who are unable to attend. If you would like to be added to the distribution list for these invitations please contact Susan Merritt [email protected]

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