Southeast Public Health to Close 7 Satellite Offices Across Region

Brockville – Southeast Public Health has decided to end the leases for offices within proximity (50 km or less) to offices owned in Belleville, Kingston, Brockville, and Smiths Falls as of March 1, 2026, in a media release issued on Friday.

Over the last several months, Southeast Public Health (SEPH) said it has been critically assessing the best way to serve the southeast region as a unified agency.

The affected office locations are located in:

• Almonte
• Gananoque
• Kemptville
• Napanee
• Perth
• Picton
• Trenton

“Among activities like merging teams across the region and harmonizing our programming, the agency has also been looking at the best way forward to continue providing core, mandated public health services across our new region, especially to rural areas,” said in the media release.

“The merger has given us time and funding to truly look at how we were delivering programs and services as legacy agencies, and to find new and innovative ways to provide programs and services together, as Southeast Public Health,” said Dr. Piotr Oglaza, Medical Officer of Health and CEO of Southeast Public Health.

They said that through this process, a comprehensive assessment of Southeast Public Health office locations, service usage, and occupancy costs was undertaken. Community needs, evolution of service delivery models, and workforce preservation were also evaluated. The findings from this assessment indicated that several leased office locations were being underutilized, and that cost savings from terminating these leases could be reinvested back into the agency to fund new and effective ways of offering programs and services.

They went on to say this approach will protect core public health programs and services while enhancing the long-term sustainability of our agency.

Operations will also discontinue at the office owned in Cloyne on March 1, 2026, where the space has been underutilized as it is not conducive to facilitating Southeast Public Health programs and services. Operations will continue in the leased office in Bancroft, due to its significant distance from the four owned offices.

“In the coming months, we will introduce rural service strategies that will employ evidence-based ways of delivering services to rural communities that leverage existing community strengths and resources, while focusing on key areas like connectivity and integration of programs and services across the southeast region,” said the media release.

“I want to assure you that we remain fully committed to the health and well-being of our rural communities,” said Dr. Oglaza. “The decision to close these offices was aimed at optimizing operations while continuing to serve the community’s needs.”

They also stated that staff will work closely with their partners to continue delivering essential public health programs and services in these areas. No permanent employee positions are being eliminated due to these changes, they said.