BARRIE, ON, May 17, 2012 /CNW/ - Deb Matthews, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, joined hospital officials, community members and health care partners today to celebrate the official opening of the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre's new addition.
The expansion of Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre will help meet the needs of a growing population and ensure timely access to services. The project nearly doubles the size of the existing hospital, adding more than 400,000 square feet of new space. The addition also houses the new Simcoe Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre, which will allow cancer patients throughout Simcoe County and the District of Muskoka to get treatments closer to home.
Over the coming weeks, patients and staff will begin moving into the new space. First to open will be a new 32-bed respiratory unit and an expanded emergency department, then the imaging department, and finally the Simcoe Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre in early summer. Renovations to the existing hospital continue, including the addition of two new operating suites which are expected to be completed by fall 2013.
Infrastructure Ontario and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care are working with Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre to expand and renovate the hospital, which will remain publicly owned, publicly controlled and publicly accountable. There were more than 400 workers on site daily at the peak of construction, with more than 80 per cent of the workers coming from the local region.
Infrastructure Ontario is a Crown corporation dedicated to delivering some of the province's larger and more complex infrastructure renewal projects on time and on budget. It also manages one of the largest real estate portfolios in Canada, offers real estate services, such as asset management and property and land management, and provides the public sector and not-for-profit organizations with long-term financing to renew public infrastructure.
Visit www.infrastructureontario.ca or www.rvh.on.ca for more information.
QUOTES:
"Congratulations to everyone at Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre for reaching this important and exciting milestone. The expansion will improve access to high quality care and provide vital health services in the right place at the right time for the people of Barrie, Simcoe County and the District of Muskoka for many years to come."
- Deb Matthews, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care
"After more than a decade of planning, fundraising and construction the region's dream is a reality. The expansion of RVH will provide Simcoe Muskoka residents with enhanced services and timely access to healthcare closer to home. Our provincial government -- the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, along with our colleagues at Infrastructure Ontario -- has demonstrated its outstanding commitment to safe, quality healthcare for our region's residents."
- Janice Skot, President and CEO of Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre
BACKGROUNDER
Founded in 1891 as the Barrie General Hospital, the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH) has grown to become the largest hospital in Simcoe County and the District of Muskoka. It serves a large geographical area that includes Simcoe County, Muskoka and Parry Sound. While the programs and services offered by RVH are vast, it specializes in cancer care, surgical services - particularly orthopedic surgery - and mental health services.
RVH has a team of more than 300 physicians and 2,300 staff members, and benefits from the support of 1,000 volunteers. The current site on Georgian Drive was opened in 1997, housing just fewer than 300 beds.
The expansion of RVH has doubled the size of the existing facility and includes the addition of the Simcoe Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre. This new cancer centre will provide comprehensive care to more than 2,000 newly diagnosed cancer patients each year throughout Simcoe County and the District of Muskoka.
The new space includes:
- the Simcoe Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre, which will have more than 65,000 patient visits in its first year;
- capacity for 101 additional inpatient beds;
- an emergency department that has tripled in size, featuring a trauma unit, isolation ward and mental health crisis team;
- an expanded, fully-automated laboratory;
- a diagnostic imaging department that has doubled in size to increase patient flow and privacy;
- two additional state-of-the-art operating rooms for complex surgeries that are larger than existing suites (completion scheduled for 2013);
- a dedicated seven-bed coronary care unit for critically ill cardiac patients, the only such unit in the region;
- and expansion space for two future patient care units (64 beds).
Construction of the new addition and cancer centre was completed in spring 2012 and the renovations to the existing hospital are expected to be completed by fall 2013.
Disponible en français
Jennifer Sclisizzi
Infrastructure Ontario
416-325-7409
Suzanne Legue
Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre
705-728-9090 extension 41600
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