Ottawa leaders launch next phase of health and housing collaboration

Creation of a Health, Housing and Homelessness Action Table to strengthen coordination across sectors.

Ottawa Health and Housing Symposium, April 10, 2026

Integrated housing‑health approaches are already improving outcomes and reducing pressure on health and emergency systems.

• Develop a coordinated Health, Housing and Homelessness Action Plan.  

• Improve access to appropriate health services for people who are unhoused or experiencing housing instability.  

• Strengthen collaboration between housing providers, health care, and community organizations.  

• Advance data sharing to support planning and decision‑making.  

• Explore opportunities to better align funding and resources.

 Housing, health care, and community partners across Ottawa.

“At The Royal, we see firsthand how deeply mental health, housing, and overall well‑being are connected. Housing is health; without a stable place to live, recovery can’t take root. The challenges we see every day, from homelessness to mental illness and addiction, don’t fit neatly within one system or one organization. This new Health, Housing and Homelessness Action Table is an important step toward working more closely together to keep people housed, support recovery, and help people build the lives they want, with dignity, connection, and purpose.” - Cara Vaccarino, President and CEO, The Royal

“We need to build more housing, and we need to make sure it works for people. So, we have brought housing, health care, and social services together to ensure residents can get the support they need, when they need it, and more seniors and families can stay safely housed. If we’re serious about solving homelessness and building a stronger city, we have to make sure the right supports are in place alongside new homes. That’s how we create a city that’s more compassionate, more effective, and works better for everyone”. — Mark Sutcliffe, Mayor of Ottawa

“When health, social, and housing services aren’t coordinated, people cycle in and out of homelessness. The new Health, Housing and Homelessness Action Table will develop an action plan aimed at integrating services, collecting and sharing data and aligning capital and operational funding. By merging health and housing care models, we can reduce downstream costs across the system but also improve the health outcomes of people who currently must navigate from shelters to hospitals and on the streets. People who are experiencing homelessness need and deserve continuous and thoughtful health care to get and keep well.” - Councillor Catherine Kitts, Chair, Ottawa Board of Health

“Building on the partnerships that brought together this Health and Housing Symposium, the new Action Table reflects a shared commitment to move from collaboration to action. By bringing housing, homelessness, health care, and community partners together under a common structure, we can strengthen coordination, build on what’s already working, and support better outcomes for people while easing pressure across all systems.” - Councillor Theresa Kavanagh, Chair of Ottawa Community Housing

“At Bruyère Health, we see every day that stable housing with the right health supports keeps people healthier, reduces avoidable hospital use, and helps seniors age with independence. Ottawa has already proven that integrating housing and health services works. This new Action Table gives us the structure to scale those solutions, align services across sectors, and deliver better outcomes for people and the system. It’s a practical step toward turning collaboration into lasting, city-wide impact.” - Melissa Donskov, Vice President Residential and Community Programs, Bruyère Health

“For a long time, we’ve approached these challenges as individual organizations trying to solve complex problems on our own. What’s different now is a shared commitment to solving them together. We have the knowledge, we have the will, and now we have a structure to move this work forward in a more coordinated way. This is how we start to turn momentum into lasting change.” - Mark MacAulay, President and CEO, Ottawa Salus

“Housing stability is crucial to patient recovery and health. As both the housing and health systems face ongoing challenges, this collaboration will strengthen community coordination, help patients transition safely out of hospital and stay connected to care.” - Cameron Love, President and CEO of The Ottawa Hospital

“This gift from the RBC Foundation will help connect tenants to healthcare services close to home and in a timely manner. This is an example of how RBC is driving more inclusive opportunities for prosperity, and supporting causes that are meaningful to our clients and communities.” - Devinder Gill, RBC Regional President, Personal Banking and Commercial Banking.