The Ottawa Heart Institute is Canada’s largest heart health centre, dedicated to preventing, diagnosing, and treating heart disease. We support people at every stage of their heart health journey while advancing the understanding and treatment of cardiovascular disease.
We bring patient care, research, education, and innovation together to improve outcomes for patients and communities. By turning new discoveries into better care, we share our expertise and shape cardiovascular health locally, nationally, and internationally.
Our patients are at the centre of everything we do. While our work is rooted in the communities we serve across Eastern Ontario, our reach extends far beyond our region. As an internationally recognized centre of excellence, we help set the standard for cardiovascular care and train the next generation of heart health professionals from Canada and around the world. Through partnerships with hospitals, healthcare providers, and community organizations, we help strengthen heart health and connect people to the care they need.
Whether someone receives care at the Heart Institute, in a community hospital, or through one of our regional programs, our goal is always the same: helping every person receive the right care, at the right time, in the right place.
At the heart of heart health
The Heart Institute plays a unique and vital role in our healthcare system.
We work with 16 hospital partners, five Ontario Health Teams, primary care providers, and community organizations to strengthen connections, coordinate care, and build a more integrated regional approach to cardiovascular health for nearly two million people across our region.
These partnerships are especially important for rural, remote, and underserved communities, where access to specialized cardiac expertise can be more limited. Together, we’re creating a more connected system that brings expertise closer to patients while supporting high-quality care in their own communities whenever possible.
Our collaborative approach supports seamless care as patients move between their family doctor, community services, local hospitals, and the Heart Institute.
Expert heart care, closer to home
Excellent heart care doesn't always mean travelling to Ottawa.
Through our regional programs and partnerships in Nunavut, Western Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador, we're helping people receive specialized cardiovascular care closer to where they live while ensuring they remain connected to the Heart Institute whenever advanced care is needed.
Our regional programs include:
- Regional referral and triage: We coordinate access to specialized cardiac procedures and surgery, helping patients receive timely care while improving referrals across the region.
- Cardiac imaging and diagnostics: Working with partner hospitals, we support high-quality cardiac testing closer to home through shared expertise, standardized practices, and specialized interpretation. Our programs reduce wait times and the need for repeat testing. Our teams currently support regional echocardiography, electrocardiography, Holter monitoring services, and cardiac CT.
- Cardiac rehabilitation: Patients recovering from heart disease can access a network of rehabilitation programs in communities across Eastern Ontario, supported by Heart Institute expertise and coordinated regional care.
- Virtual care and remote monitoring: Digital health programs allow patients to stay safely connected with their care team from home, improving convenience while reducing unnecessary hospital visits.
- Urgent cardiac assessment: Our Acute Cardiac Triage Unit provides rapid access to specialist evaluation, diagnostics, and treatment for urgent cardiac concerns, helping patients receive timely care while reducing unnecessary emergency department visits.
- Education for healthcare professionals: We provide ongoing education, mentorship, and clinical support that help healthcare teams across the region deliver evidence-based cardiovascular care.
- Prevention and early detection: Community screening and outreach initiatives, like our One Million Canadian Hearts program, help identify heart disease earlier and empower people to better understand and manage their cardiovascular health.
- Specialized programs: National centres of expertise, including the Canadian Women's Heart Health Centre, provide specialized care while supporting healthcare providers throughout Eastern Ontario and beyond.
Together, these programs improve access to specialized expertise, strengthen local capacity, and help more people receive exceptional heart care closer to home.
Improving care for today and tomorrow
Providing outstanding care today means continually finding better ways to care for patients tomorrow.
Research, education, innovation, and quality improvement drive our commitment to advancing cardiovascular health and improving care for patients today and in the future.
As cardiovascular care evolves, the Heart Institute remains focused on advancing new ideas, embracing innovation, and turning new possibilities into better care for people in our region, across Canada, and beyond.
Learn more about our strategic plan, our leadership, milestones in our history, and the priorities guiding the future of the Ottawa Heart Institute.