Grand River Hospital and St. Mary’s General Hospital are working together to plan for the future of hospital-based services to meet the needs of the growing community of Waterloo Region and beyond. Following the recent commitment from the Ontario government to invest $5 million to support this planning, the hospitals are formally launching the next phase of this project, called “Building the Future of Care Together”.
“Building the Future of Care Together” is a joint project to build new hospital infrastructure in Kitchener-Waterloo.
“The people in our hospitals provide excellent patient care, but we have outgrown our aging buildings,” said Ron Gagnon, CEO and President of Grand River Hospital. “As our community continues to grow, the pressure and overcrowding at our hospitals will only increase – unless we build for the future. We need new and expanded facilities that leverage the innovation and technology available in our region to look to the future, break boundaries and meet the needs of our growing communities.”
“Our organizations have a shared vision to build a new hospital, improve aging infrastructure and create a connected health system for our communities and our teams,” said Sherri Ferguson, Interim President of St. Mary’s General Hospital. “A health care system of the future requires something new and shared, building on our respective pasts to create a stronger, healthier future for our communities.”
The plan to build a stronger health system for Waterloo Region and beyond will take years, and the hospitals are in the initial planning stages. Grand River Hospital and St. Mary’s General Hospital are launching “Building the Future of Care Together” to ensure the community is engaged and informed throughout this important project for health care in Waterloo Region.
As part of this project the hospitals have submitted a joint proposal to government based on consultations with staff, physicians and other professional staff, community and health system partners, including Cambridge Memorial Hospital and the KW4 Ontario Health Team. The proposal was supported by both hospital boards as well as the St. Joseph’s Health System board. This proposal includes building a new, state-of-the-art hospital in Kitchener-Waterloo, renewing and repurposing the existing Grand River Hospital building in mid-town Kitchener as an ambulatory and urgent care centre, and renewing the Freeport Campus for modernized and expanded rehabilitation capacity. All sites would be shared by both Grand River Hospital and St. Mary’s General Hospital.
While planning for the future, both hospitals will continue to operate in their current spaces with no impact or disruption to patient care. This means we will continue to meet the needs of growing communities while planning for the next phase of health care delivery together. Plans for the new joint hospital, including its location, will be determined at a later stage of planning after important consultations occur with the community, hospital teams, health system partners, municipalities and local governments, and the provincial government. The joint proposal submitted to government is also subject to modifications following further engagements with government, our partners and the community.
St. Mary’s General Hospital and Grand River Hospital are building the future of care, together and look forward to continuing to partner with other providers and the communities we serve in future phases of planning. For more information, please visit www.futureofcaretogether.ca.
For more information, please contact:
Cheryl Evans Manager, Communications and Engagement
Grand River Hospital
t: 519-749-4300 ext. 3880
m: 226-749-0689
Dayna Giorgio Manager, Communications
St. Mary’s General Hospital
m: 519-895-6540