The event, hosted by the Information Technology Association of Canada (ITAC) and business law firm Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, acted as bridge between Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and the IT vendor community.

Infrastructure Ontario will be handling the procurement of IT infrastructure projects related to the transformation of Ontario's healthcare system, ITAC announced.

"The province has outlined a $2.3 billion agenda to address immediate clinical priorities and to build infrastructure which will provide the foundation for a province-wide electronic health record system. Infrastructure Ontario will be handling the procurement for these large projects," states ITAC.

The arrival of Infrastructure Ontario changes the picture, according to Bernard Courtois, president and CEO of ITAC. "This is a significant change to the IT industry and the model they are used to dealing with. It is also a significant change for Ontario," said Courtois.

IO introduced its Alternative Financing and Procurement (AFP) model, which uses private sector financing to assist the government, its agencies and the broader public sector to develop infrastructure projects while maintaining public ownership and control. AFP is a variation of Public-Private Partnerships (P3).