Humber River Hospital redevelopment named as Best Healthcare Project, North America, and Plenary Group as Best Project Sponsor, North America, at World Finance Magazine 2013 Awards

TORONTO, March 18, 2013 /CNW/ - Humber River Hospital's redevelopment project was singled out for two awards at the 2013 World Finance Magazine Public Private Partnerships Awards: Best Healthcare Project, North America for Humber River Hospital and Best Project Sponsor, North America for Plenary Group.

The awards were presented to HRH President & CEO Dr. Rueben Devlin and Plenary Group CEO Mike Marasco at a ceremony at the London Stock Exchange in January.

According to World Finance magazine, since 2007, the World Finance Awards have been celebrating achievement and innovation in their annual awards.  With independent, expert thought on the judging panel, drawing on 230 years of financial journalism experience, the Awards recognize industry leaders, eminent individuals, exemplary teams and distinguished organizations, which it believes represent the benchmark of achievement and best practice in a variety of fields.

"The Humber River Hospital is our largest and most exciting project to date," said Marasco. "It embodies innovation, from the design, to the technology infrastructure, and even the financing solution we employed. The LEAN and GREEN design will significantly reduce operating costs over the life of the facility, by making it a more efficient environment. In addition, the fully digital hospital environment is a first in North America. It really pushes the boundaries of automation in a healthcare environment, which we see as the way of the future - especially since it allows healthcare practitioners to spend more time focusing on their patients."

"Our priority all along has been to place patients and families at the centre of the design process, and we're thrilled with the results to date. I can say with certainty that we have pushed the limits to enhance the patient experience at all levels: care, quality, safety and comfort," said Dr. Devlin. "But we also understood the demand from the general public for fiscal responsibility and accountability in a project of this magnitude and impact. These Awards are a wonderful recognition from an impressive third party that we've make remarkable progress towards both of these goals."

This is not the first time the Humber River project has been recognized for its financing strategy. Last November the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships (CCPPP) presented the project with the Silver Project Finance Award at its 2012 National Awards for Innovation & Excellence.

The CCPPP awards recognize outstanding Canadian public-private partnerships in the areas of project financing, service delivery and infrastructure, showcasing how they are having a positive impact in communities across Canada looking for renewal and investment to deliver infrastructure and services faster, more efficiently and at greater value for taxpayers. The CCPPP citation reads in part:
This $1.75 billion project is the first fully digital hospital in North America. The $1 billion of private construction-phase financing is sourced from a combination of short-term and long-term bond proceeds, which achieved an "A" rating by each of Standard & Poors and the DBRS when they were issued.

About Humber River Hospital:

Humber River Hospital is one of Canada's largest regional acute care hospitals, serving a catchment area of more than 850,000 people in the northwest Greater Toronto Area. The hospital currently operates on three sites with a total of 549 beds, 3,000 staff, approximately 600 physicians and 400 volunteers. Affiliated with the University of Toronto, the hospital is home to Ontario's first Centre of Excellence for laparoscopic bariatric surgery, Canada's first home nocturnal dialysis program and a major cancer program.
Humber River Hospital is currently building North America's first fully digital hospital, one that the organization plans to make a technological and environmental showcase.
Learn more about our plans for the future at www.hrrh.ca/redevelopment.

About Plenary Group:

Plenary Group is Canada's leading developer of on-time, on-budget and performance-guaranteed infrastructure, including healthcare facilities. For more information on Plenary Group, please visit our website at www.plenarygroup.com.

SOURCE: Humber River Regional Hospital

Gerard Power
Director, Public and Corporate Communications   
Humber River Hospital
t. 416-243-4448      
[email protected]     

Olivia MacAngus
Vice-President Corporate Development 
Plenary Group
t. 416.309.2218  
[email protected]