AUGUST 2014
H
business elite canada 149
By Leah Kellar
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The counties of Wellington and Dufferin and
the city of Guelph are benefiting from two new
Public Health facilities located in Orangeville
and Guelph—a $25-million project funded by
the municipalities. Public health agencies are
mandated by the province to promote healthy
communities and support healthy lifestyles
while preventing disease and injury. There are
36 public health units across Ontario. Wel-
lington-Dufferin-Guelph (WDG) Public Health
serves the counties of Dufferin and Wellington
and the City of Guelph and is located just west
of the Greater Toronto Area in the south cen-
tral part of Ontario.
“Public Health is often the invisible health-
care organization,” said WDG Public Health’s
Medical Officer of Health and CEO, Dr. Nicola
Mercer in a recent interview with Business
Elite Canada.
What Dr. Mercer means is that when people
think generally of healthcare they often think of
hospitals, doctor’s offices or clinics. But Public
Health is busy promoting health and prevent-
ing disease so people don’t have to go to the
hospital or see their doctor so often.
“We are the inspectors, your nurses, your
dieticians, your health promoters, the people
that are there in the community making sure
