The South Bruce Grey Health Centre is moving along with redevelopment plans for the Kincardine hospital.
The visioning presentation is part of developing a business case for the Ministry of Health to consider having included in its five-year capital improvement plan.
90 percent of hospital redevelopment costs are provincially-funded–but that only includes building construction itself, equipment costs have to be covered through fundraising.
The project proposal also has to fit in with the objectives of the government and the Local Health Integration Network (LHIN).
The redevelopment would maintain all existing surgical, emergency, and ambulatory facilities that the hospital already has.
The 36 bed capacity of the hospital would also be kept.
Plans call for the Emergency Room, ambulatory care, and medical day facilities to be located in the same place.
The surgical suite and pharmacy would also be redeveloped.
Davies says core services will be maintained at all South Bruce Grey Health Centre sites, but says things are expected to remain fairly static for the forseeable future, and that is what the plans are based on.
It is also likely that the facility will also be connected to the nearby Kincardine Community Medical Centre.
Davies describes the plan as a “health care mall” where the hospital is the anchor like a department store connected to smaller services like a Family Health Team, the Community Care Access Centre, a private physiotherapy clinic, and organizations like the Alzheimer Society.
Engineers have already looked at the existing building to determine what parts should or should not be part of any redevelopment plan.
The wing of the hospital built in 1956 is described as a “liability” and would not be included.
The possibility of an entirely new hospital building could also be considered if the existing structure is not deemed suitable for redevelopment.
David Cerny of Architecture and Design firm COHOS Evamy says their business case analysis will help decide if the older facility should be improved, or entirely replaced.
As for the future of the hospital in Kincardine, Davies says from the board’s standpoint, there has never been any questions about the building not being redeveloped and continuing to serve the community.
South Bruce Grey Health Centre wants to have the redevelopment plans in the hands of the Ministry of Health before they make their annual additions to the list of capital projects in the fall.