The South Bruce Grey Health Centre Kincardine site has been given the green light to move into Stage 2 of its redevelopment plans and has also received approval to advance to the next stage in its plans to purchase a CT scanner.
Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson made the announcements at a special news conference today (Sept. 25) outside the Kincardine hospital along with SBGHC President and CAO Michael Barrett, Bruce County Warden Mitch Twolan, Kincardine Mayor Anne Eadie, Mike Rencheck, Bruce Power’s President and CEO, and local health officials.
“This is a great day for health care in Kincardine,” Thompson said. “It’s has been a long time coming, but we are committed to moving forward and getting these vitally important projects done.”
Thompson said the provincial government has approved a one-time capital planning grant of up to $1,520,000 to assist the hospital with completion of early capital planning including the development of a Stage 2 Functional Program Submission. This will bring the total one-time maximum ministry grant from the previously approved $500,000 to up to $2,020,000.
Thompson also announced that the province has approved another grant of up to $1,410,000 towards the CT scanner. The Kincardine and Community Health Care Foundation has committed to fund the entire cost of the CT scanner equipment and additional building development, which includes a $1M donation from Bruce Power made in 2014 to support improvements to the Kincardine hospital Emergency Department.
“We are fortunate to have great communities and quality of life in our region,” said Mike Rencheck, Bruce Power’s President and CEO. “A big part of that is our local hospitals which are at the forefront of rural health care and Bruce Power feels a strong sense of responsibility to support health care which is why we committed $1 million to the Kincardine Hospital in 2014. We’re thrilled with the funding announcement today by the province which will help the redevelopment and purchase of CT scan equipment become a reality. Our employees are proud of the role we play in supporting health care locally, while at the same time supplying medical isotopes globally to keep hospitals clean and safe, treat brain tumours, and assist in the fight against cancer.”
The hospital redevelopment project is phased, with the first phase focusing on the outpatient areas of the hospital – an expansion of the ER, Diagnostic Imaging, Laboratory and lobby services. The second phase of the redevelopment, which will not occur for several years, will include primarily the inpatient unit.
With the upcoming Major Component Replacement Project at the Bruce Power Nuclear Facility, the population of the Kincardine area will increase significantly in the coming years, with a corresponding increase in demand on the Kincardine hospital’s emergency department, diagnostic imaging, and laboratory services.
“The physical infrastructure of the Kincardine site is aging and requires replacement, and these announcements today will bring us one step closer to seeing new infrastructure to meet the needs of the growing community of Kincardine and surrounding area. This is excellent news for the Kincardine community, our hospital staff, and physicians,” said Michael Barrett, SBGHC President &CEO. “And the introduction of a CT scanner in Kincardine will mean that patients can receive this important service close to home, eliminating the need to travel to another centre. We thank the Government of Ontario for this important capital investment in the Kincardine hospital.”
SBGHC’s Kincardine site has the highest demand for CT scans from emergency department visits and inpatients across the organization’s four sites. In addition, SBGHC is currently incurring significant costs to transfer patients between Kincardine and Walkerton when a CT is required.
Health officials say that with the high volume of patients being transported between Kincardine and Walkerton for CT services, patient experience will be greatly improved having this technology in the Kincardine community.