Tecumseh mayor Gary McNamara is the new Warden of Essex County. In a post-election interview with the Windsor Star, he said the new Windsor Essex Hospital System is something our region not only needs, but deserves.

“That’s one of the big ones. We’ve got to get that mega-hospital built,” McNamara said.

As for the long-running debate over the location of the mega-hospital, McNamara said he considers that matter “settled.”
“We want to make sure we don’t lose our spot in the cue,” McNamara said. “This is something that our region not only needs, but deserves.”

“The point here is we should rally to make sure that it’s built. Our residents in the county are contributing $100 million — hard-earned tax dollars — to make that hospital a reality.”

“I think it’s ridiculous to argue if it should be here or there. I firmly believe the decision was made through the work of the site selection committee — Let’s move on.”

Read the full article here: Tecumseh Mayor McNamara elected Essex County Warden

We look forward to working with Warden McNamara in his new role. #WEareReady

In today’s Windsor Star, Dr. Larry Jacobs, new Associate Dean at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Windsor Campus, says he is looking forward to providing input on the school’s physical presence in the new Windsor-Essex Hospitals System.

“It’s rare that you get a chance to be part of something like that,” Jacobs said.

Read the full article here: New head of medical school’s Windsor Campus takes pride in never rushing patients

Education and research are among the main drivers of the new Windsor-Essex Hospitals System. We look forward to working with Dr. Jacobs. #WEareReady

What is the latest on the new Windsor-Essex Hospitals System?  Windsor Regional Hospital President and CEO David Musyj spoke with Lynn Martin this morning on AM 800 with this update:

Following the approval of the zoning applications for a new regional hospital earlier this month, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens and Essex County Warden Tom Bain sent a letter to provincial leaders reinforcing the region’s commitment to the project and letting Ontario’s new Premier and Health Minister know WE ARE READY to move forward with planning.

Click here to read the letter.

Thank you Mayor Dilkens, Warden Bain and everyone who continues to support this project.

#WEareReady

The recent zoning discussions at Windsor City Council have lead to plenty of healthy debate, but not all of the information being shared is factual.

We thought this would be a good time to post some facts about the new Windsor-Essex Hospitals System. Please click here, or on the image below for a full view of the Windsor-Essex Hospitals System FACT SHEET.

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Mayor Drew Dilkens

“I want a $2-billion-dollar investment in my community. I want that. I think that people in this community deserve better healthcare, because guess what? If we pass, and we say we don’t care, it’s not in the right place we’re going to move on … if we take a pass on that, it’s going to go to another community and all of us are going to pay for it. You’re all going to be paying provincial tax and we’re all going to be paying for a hospital somewhere else. So tonight is a big step forward for better healthcare for everyone in Windsor and Essex.” _ Mayor Drew Dilkens.
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Councillor Hilary Payne

“The existing hospitals, established many years ago, are severely dated, and a new modern hospital containing all the latest advances in medical technology is very much needed … this is no way an opportunity that we should pass up. Not only on our own interests, but the interests of all future generations.” _ Coun. Hilary Payne, Ward 9
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Councillor Irek Kusmierczyk

“Residents of Forest Glade and East Riverside in Ward 7 will have better, closer and faster access to a state-of-the-art acute care hospital that will have the most modern equipment and technology, attract the best trained doctors and staff, and provide the highest quality of service, that will be the envy of Ontario. The proximity to this new hospital, the most modern hospital in Ontario, will not only improve access to healthcare for residents of Ward 7 and our city, but it will improve healthcare and our region period. Quality healthcare is foundational to quality of life.” _ Coun. Irek Kusmierczyk, Ward 7
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Councillor Jo-Anne Gignac

“I truly believe that the opportunity in front of us tonight is far reaching. There certainly have been concerns expressed tonight and I understand the issue of trying to make sure that everything we’ve done recently to promote the core of our city isn’t put on the sidelines by a decision that we’re making tonight. However, I truly believe in the administrative recommendations that have been put in front of us and the work that has been undertaken in this community over a significant number of years because we have been looking at this annexed land area since I was first elected to council in 2003. And the balanced approach that’s put in front of both the planning advisory committee and council is a solid one.” _ Coun. Jo-Anne Gignac, Ward 6
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Councillor Paul Borrelli

“The Ministry of Health and WRH and the assigned hospital selection committee all worked together for a couple of years, intensely, diligently and collaboratively, with the public and the administration here, to extensive consultation on the site selection. The selection was made using a very fair process. It conforms with the provincial policy statement and it conforms to the City of Windsor Official Plan.” _ Coun. Paul Borrelli, Ward 10
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Councillor Fred Francis

“… I firmly believe that everyone in this community and certainly everyone in this room wants a new hospital. I’ve heard that several times and I’ll take people for their word. I will say that Your Worship, when you explained the situation earlier this evening and said ‘well if it went here, there and people are arguing that we won’t get it’, I did hear someone in the audience say “well good. That’s fine.” That’s your opinion, everyone’s entitled to their opinion and I’m certainly entitled to mine. So let me be clear: That’s not an option for me. Not getting a brand new hospital is no option for me. And it’s not an option for tens of thousands of others, of our citizens that want a new hospital, that want an improved healthcare system.” _ Coun. Fred Francis, Ward 1
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Councillor John Elliott

“We need a new hospital. I know lots has been said about the location, the intensification, the density, and honestly, I’m on board with just getting the new hospital. I recall a close friend of mine some years ago. Her and her husband lived in Kingston and he worked in corrections, she worked in nursing. They were there for about 15 years and they came back to Windsor to be with family and she applied to the hospital system. During the conversation, she told me it was like going from the future to the Stone Age in terms of what our facilities look like and she actually admitted to me she got depressed about it …. I have kids, I have grandkids. I know a lot of people do. Fundamentally for me, it’s about getting a new hospital.” _ Coun. John Elliott, Ward 2
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Councillor Ed Sleiman

“Met and (Ouellette campus) have been in our community for a long time. They served the community well. However, the community has grown; technology has changed the way patients are being treated in hospitals. State-of-the-art equipment have been developed that can diagnose and treat patients more efficiently, (and) could not fit in our hospital because of the limited space. Hallways are narrow, patient rooms are gloomy, hospital staff and doctors do not have adequate space to do their job efficiently. Technology grants that improve patient care go to modern hospitals in the province, not to our existing hospitals.” _ Coun. Ed Sleiman, Ward 5
Transcript

Councillor Chris Holt

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Councillor Rino Bortolinwrh.on.ca/…hed/wrh_internet/Document.aspx

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Another step forward for the Windsor-Essex Hospitals System

Patients in Windsor-Essex are a step closer to the state-of-the-art, modern healthcare they deserve. Last night, Windsor City Council and the Planning Heritage and Economic Development Standing Committee voted to approve the hospital’s zoning applications. Thanks to all who added a voice to the discussion and thanks to City Council and the Standing Committee for your leadership and support.

The joint public meeting was to determine how the area around the new hospital will develop over the next 30 years and beyond, and how the new hospital can be accommodated on the selected site. During the meeting City Planner and Executive Director Thom Hunt said the plan meets provincial and municipal requirements and “makes good planning sense”.

In making their decision, many Councillors commented on the significance of the vote and what it will mean for healthcare.

“Tonight is big step forward for better healthcare for everyone in Windsor-Essex,” said Mayor Drew Dilkens. “We’re talking about a regional hospital, or no hospital at all. I want a $2 billion investment in my community. I think people deserve better healthcare.”

This is another important milestone in the region’s journey toward a new world class hospitals system for Windsor-Essex.

MAJOR MILESTONES TO DATE:

Nov. 2012  Task force recommends moving forward with a new single-site acute care hospital for Windsor-Essex.

Oct. 2013   Historic Realignment of Hospital Services.

July 2015   Volunteer Site Selection Subcommittee recommends site for new hospital

July 2015   Windsor-Essex Hospitals System plan announced

April 2016  City and County Councils approve levy to cover local share of the project

Nov. 2017   Infrastructure Ontario appointed to lead the procurement process for construction of the new hospital. A Request for Qualifications (RFQ) scheduled to be issued in 2021, subject to change.

Dec. 2017   Minister of Health and Long-Term Care commits to moving the project to Stage 2

Aug. 2018   Zoning applications approved by Windsor City Council.

NEXT STEPS:

Opponents to the plan have indicated they are planning an appeal.

“We are expecting and prepared for that and hopefully that moves along quickly,” says David Musyj, President and CEO of Windsor Regional Hospital and Co-Chair of Steering Committee overseeing plans for the new Windsor-Essex Hospitals System. “I think it is going to be very difficult on any grounds of appeal though. It is a very solid plan, in the best interest of the city, with conservative projections with respect to numbers. I expect the appeal will be quick and we can go ahead and close on the property.”

In the meantime, Windsor Regional Hospital and the Steering Committee overseeing plans for the Windsor Essex Hospitals System will continue to work with the Erie St. Clair LHIN and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC) on details of a plan that will best meet the need of patients in the region.

THE NEW WINDSOR-ESSEX HOSPITALS SYSTEM WILL:

Offer patient and family-centred care. The acute care hospital will be designed to accommodate individual patient needs with larger rooms offering more privacy for patients, better accommodations for families and a safer’ less institutional environment.

Improve patient safety and privacy. At least 80% of the rooms in a new hospital will be private. This will help prevent the spread of infection and increase patient privacy.

Help retain and recruit top healthcare professionals. Modern infrastructure will give employees the right tools and facilities they need to enhance patient care. A strengthened focus on education and research will increase collaboration and opportunities for clinical trials.

Include an Urgent Care Centre in the City’s core. To treat semi-urgent and non-urgent patients. For more information on what EMERGENCY CARE EXPERTS are saying about the plan for a UCC, check out this blog from our archives: REDEFINING THE FUTURE OF EMERGENCY CARE.

NOT result in the removal of all healthcare services from the city’s core. The current plan calls for a number of services to be offered in the core including a satellite Emergency (Urgent Care), outpatient mental health, chronic pain management and dialysis.

NOT result in a reduction of beds. The current plan is to have the same number of beds that currently exist, with the capacity to expand if needed.

NOT result in the closure of Erie Shores Healthcare, in Leamington. That hospital is an integral part of hospital services in the region and the CEO from Erie Shores Healthcare has been part of the planning process with representation on the Steering Committee for the new Windsor-Essex Hospitals System.

Improve communication between patients, staff and the system. Smart technologies and an efficient design will remove current communication barriers and free up more time for staff to spend providing direct patient care.

When the team at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital selected a site for a new hospital, they knew they were looking for a forever home. So they chose a large empty site to serve the community for generations to come.

The following video was produced in 2014, while the site was still under construction. 

The new Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital opened in the fall of 2015.

FROM THE ARCHIVE: NEW OAKVILLE HOSPITAL: BUILT WITH AND FOR THE COMMUNITY

IMPROVING THE PATIENT EXPERIENCE

Bigger isn’t always better, but when it comes to the size of your hospital room, it could mean a much more comfortable stay with fewer disruptions for patients trying to heal.

WATCH: IMPROVING THE PATIENT EXPERIENCE – BIGGER ROOMS

IMPROVING THE PATIENT EXPERIENCE 

Right now, if you are coming to WRH by ambulance or patient transport services you might have to deal with nasty weather and busy public areas before recieving medical care.

The video below is another example of how the new Windsor-Essex Hospitals System will make a trip the hospital a lot more comfortable and private for patients, right from the time they arrive.

WATCH: COMFORTABLE & PRIVATE ARRIVALS