Agenda

This meeting of the Board of Health will be conducted with members participating in person and remotely.

Directors of the Board and participating City Officials will be provided with the video conference details closer to the meeting date.

To provide comments or make a presentation to the Board of Health:

The public may submit written comments or register to speak to the Board on any item on the agenda.

Written comments may be submitted by writing to boh@toronto.ca.

To speak to the Board, please register by e-mail to boh@toronto.ca or by phone at 416-397-4592. Registered speakers will be provided with instructions on how to participate in the meeting.

Special Assistance for Members of the Public: City staff can arrange for special assistance with some advance notice. If you need special assistance, please call 416-397-4592, TTY 416-338-0889 or e-mail boh@toronto.ca.

Closed Meeting Requirements: If the Board of Health wants to meet in closed session (privately), a director of the Board must make a motion to do so and give the reason why the Board has to meet privately (City of Toronto Act, 2006).

Notice to People Writing or Making Presentations to the Board of Health: The City of Toronto Act, 2006 and the City of Toronto Municipal Code authorize the City of Toronto to collect any personal information in your communication or presentation to City Council or its Committees and Boards. The City collects this information to enable it to make informed decisions on the relevant issue(s). If you are submitting letters, faxes, e-mails, presentations or other communications to the City, you should be aware that your name and the fact that you communicated with the City will become part of the public record and will appear on the City's website. The City will also make your communication and any personal information in it - such as your postal address, telephone number or e-mail address - available to the public, unless you expressly request the City to remove it.

Many Committee, Board, and Advisory Body meetings are broadcast live over the internet for the public to view. If you speak at the meeting you will appear in the video broadcast. Video broadcasts are archived and continue to be publicly available.

If you want to learn more about why and how the City collects your information, write to the City Clerk's Office, City Hall, 100 Queen Street West, Toronto ON M5H 2N2 or call 416-397-4592. 

toronto.ca/council

This agenda and any supplementary materials submitted to the City Clerk can be found online at toronto.ca/council. Visit the website for access to all agendas, reports, decisions, and minutes of City Council and its Committees and Boards.

Declarations of Interest under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act

Confirmation of Minutes - June 3, 2025

Speakers/Presentations - The speakers list will be posted online at 8:30 a.m. on July 7, 2025

Communications/Reports

Earlier this year, the Medical Officer of Health Hiring Panel regrouped to continue the search for Toronto’s next Medical Officer of Health. After a thorough search and interview process, we are bringing forward a recommendation to appoint the new Medical Officer of Health.

A report on the appointment of the recommended Medical Officer of Health will be submitted for consideration to the July 7th meeting of the Board of Health.

The Chair, Medical Officer of Health Hiring Panel recommends to the Board of Health that:

1. City Council appoint the candidate identified in the Confidential Attachment 1 to the position of Medical Officer of Health for the City of Toronto Health Unit effective on September 3, 2025, or on the date the appointment is approved by the Minister of Health, whichever is later. 

2. City Council transmit the appointment of the Medical Officer of Health to the provincial Minister of Health for approval. 

3. City Council authorize the appropriate City officials to take the necessary action to give effect thereto, including the introduction in Council of the necessary bills to appoint the approved candidate as the Medical Officer of Health under the Health Protection and Promotion Act, R.S.O. 1990, c H.7 (“HPPA”).

4. City Council authorize the public release of the Curriculum Vitae summary of the Medical Officer of   Health contained in Confidential Attachment 1 upon approval from City Council.

The purpose of this report is to recommend to the Board of Health an appointment to the position of Medical Officer of Health (MOH).

There are no financial implications resulting from the adoption of the recommendations in this report beyond what has already been included in the 2025 operating budget. 

The Acting Medical Officer of Health recommends that:

1. The Board of Health receive this report for information.

On July 8, 2024, the Board of Health adopted the Toronto Public Health Strategic Plan 2024-2028, which serves as the guiding blueprint to help the organization navigate key priorities, ensuring continued delivery of high-quality programs and services. The Strategic Plan lays out an ambitious vision: a city where all people can be healthy and thrive.

This report demonstrates the progress made in the past year to implement Toronto Public Health's Strategic Plan. This progress includes:

• Advancing strategic priorities through Board of Health reports and recommendations;
• Developing concrete actions to advance the plan's objectives and priorities; and
• Launching a public dashboard to track implementation of the plan.

Toronto Public Health is implementing the priorities and objectives in the strategic plan and will report annually to the Board of Health on its progress.

There is no financial impact resulting from the adoption of the recommendation in this report.

The Acting Medical Officer of Health recommends that:  

1. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to continue to engage in knowledge translation activities with City divisions, health care partners, social service agencies and others who would benefit from the information on the Population Health Status Indicators dashboard, including future data refreshes.

2. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to explore a community data governance framework for Toronto Public Health, in alignment with the City of Toronto's Data for Equity Strategy.

Toronto Public Health is responsible for assessing and reporting on the health status of the city's population as mandated under the Ontario Public Health Standards. This information can be used by Toronto Public Health, other City of Toronto divisions, health care partners, social service agencies, and other public and private sector organizations to identify targeted interventions to improve health outcomes for residents. In 2024, Toronto Public Health released its Strategic Plan 2024-2028, which included a priority to  "Advocate to advance health equity".

This report provides an update on the Population Health Status Indicators (PHSI) dashboard, which is an initiative to provide population health information to advance health equity. Identification of health inequities requires characterization of patterns and trends in disaggregated population-level data. The Population Health Status Indicators dashboard was originally launched in 2019 and was refreshed and updated in 2024. The dashboard currently includes over 100 indicators across seven public health topics. Trends are shown over time, by geography and by available socio-demographic characteristics that can include age, sex, ethno-racial identity, and income groupings. These indicators can help Toronto Public Health and partners identify, monitor and respond to health and social inequities.

There is no financial impact resulting from the adoption of the recommendation in this report.

The Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer has reviewed this report and agrees with the information as presented in the Financial Impact Section.

The Acting Medical Officer of Health recommends that: 

1.  The Board of Health recommend that City Council authorize the continued implementation and operation of the Downtown Community Outreach Response and Engagement program, as outlined in the June 26, 2025 report from the Acting Medical Officer of Health.

2.  The Board of Health recommend that City Council authorize the Medical Officer of Health to enter into or continue agreements or other arrangements with the Toronto Police Service and/or other service organizations and agencies for the operation of the Downtown Community Outreach Response and Engagement program on terms satisfactory to the Medical Officer of Health and in a form satisfactory to the City Solicitor.

3.  The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to report back to the Board of Health with evaluation results and recommendations for the next steps of the Downtown Community Outreach Response and Engagement program in the first quarter of 2026. 

In 2024, Toronto Public Health and the Toronto Police Service launched the Downtown Community Outreach Response and Engagement (CORE) program as a one-year pilot to address complex health and social service needs among individuals experiencing homelessness, and challenges with mental health and substance use in the Yonge-Dundas (Sankofa Square) area. The program pairs public health nurses with police constables to deliver integrated, low-barrier, mobile outreach and case management services.

The program aims to connect individuals with health, social, and wraparound services, including harm reduction interventions, through voluntary, trauma-informed, client-centered engagement. The model aligns with the City’s Our Health, Our City Strategy, advances the City’s SafeTO Community Safety and Well-Being Plan, and applies a public health lens to community safety and well-being.

This report provides an overview of the program and seeks City Council authority to continue its implementation. Toronto Public Health will provide an update on the program, including the results of an evaluation, to the Board of Health upon completion of the pilot period in the first quarter of 2026 and seek the Board of Health’s direction on the future of the program beyond the pilot year.

There are no financial impacts associated with the adoption of the recommendations in this report.  

$1.0 million in gross expenditures and 8.0 staff positions for the Downtown CORE program are included in Toronto Public Health’s 2025 Operating Budget. Toronto Public Health is funded by the Ministry of Health and the City of Toronto.

The Medical Officer of Health will report back on next steps and any associated financial impact for the Downtown CORE program in the first quarter of 2026.

The Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer has reviewed this report and agrees with the information as presented in the Financial Impact Section.

The Acting Medical Officer of Health recommends that:  

1. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to include in upcoming Strategic Plan updates, progress on the TPH Public Health Surveillance Framework, including: 

a. Public launch of the first phase of the public health monitoring dashboard; and 

b. Progress on planning and development of additional monitoring indicators.   

2. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to partner with academics and community researchers, City divisions and others to assess the feasibility of qualitative and quantitative research on areas of human health where data sources do not currently exist, such as: 

a. Excess deaths and the burden of illness from heat and air quality; and 

b. Health-related behavioural impacts that contribute to adaptation and resilience.

In November 2023, the Board of Health adopted Item 2023.HL8.3 Public Health Impacts of Climate Change in Toronto: A Path Forward for Responding to the Climate Crisis, re-establishing a commitment to leadership and collaboration on climate change and health actions that reduce health inequities. The Board of Health also recommended that the Medical Officer of Health report back in 2025 on progress on a surveillance framework, climate change health indicators, and collaboration efforts.  

The most recent Toronto climate projections reinforce the need for a systematic way to track the health impacts of the increasing heat, variable precipitation and unpredictable weather that will affect health. Timely monitoring and surveillance of impacts on health and wellbeing, including from climate change, are a strategic priority action for Toronto Public Health (TPH). 

This report describes Toronto Public Health’s approach to creating a climate change-related health impact surveillance framework, which will be developed over the next several years. The first phase of this work will create a publicly accessible dashboard that is expected to launch in spring 2026. The dashboard will be updated annually and will share information related to the health impacts of climate change, including:

• Heat related illnesses
• Vector borne diseases from ticks and mosquitoes
• Injuries following severe weather
• Health impacts of poor air quality
• Impacts from UV radiation
• Food-borne diseases; and
• Water quality implications.

Funding is available in the 2025 Operating Budget of Toronto Public Health to support the Strategic Plan updates on the TPH Public Health Surveillance Framework and feasibility assessments.

Any future financial implications associated with the research will be discussed in future staff reports for Board of Health and Council’s consideration and if required, will be included as a new investment or enhancement in future budget submissions for consideration along with other City priorities.

The Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer has reviewed this report and agrees with the information as presented in the Financial Impact Section.

Charles Ozzoude recommends that the Board of Health receive this item for information.

As Toronto’s representative on the Association of Local Public Health Agencies (alPHa) Board of Directors and the Board of Health (BOH) Section Executive Committee, I attended the 2025 alPHa Annual General Meeting and Conference, held here in Toronto from June 18 to 20.

The event brought together public health leaders from across Ontario. It served as a valuable opportunity to share updates from our respective public health units, engage in shared learning, and build connections with peers across the province. According to organizers, the AGM and Conference is an important educational and networking event, featuring high-profile speakers and a range of timely public health topics.

Established in 1986, alPHa is a not-for-profit organization that provides leadership to Ontario’s boards of health and their local public health units.

Conference Highlights:

1. St. Lawrence Market Walking Tour – Explored Toronto’s food history and its connections to
public health regulation and safety.

2. Keynote by Marc Forgette – Founder of Makatew Workshops, Marc led a compelling
session rooted in Indigenous teachings, including the hands-on weaving of Dream
Catchers.

3. Topical Sessions on Public Health Priorities:

• Partnering with Ontario Health and Public Health Ontario
• Indigenous engagement and public health
• Navigating Ontario’s evolving policy landscape
• Provincial update from Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore

 
4. Distinguished Service Awards – Recognizing outstanding leadership and long-standing
contributions to public health in Ontario.

                     
5. Section Meetings – Included discussions among members of the Boards of Health (BOH)
and the Council of Ontario Medical Officers of Health (COMOH), as well as the annual
business meeting and passage of key resolutions.