Lakeridge Health Receives Further Support from the Government of Ontario

NEWS                                                                                                                                  December 6, 2023

DURHAM REGION — The Government of Ontario is providing more support to Lakeridge Health for 2023-24 through two significant investments.

Lakeridge Health will receive the following:

  • $114,595 through the Surgical and DI Innovation and Efficiency Program and;
  • $7.3 million as part of the Alternative Levels of Care (ALC) and Patient Flow Initiatives

As part of the Surgery Recovery Fund, Lakeridge Health will receive $114,595 for 2023-24 through the Surgical and DI Innovation and Efficiency Program. The Surgical and DI Innovation and Efficiency Program is an application-based fund that supports innovative solutions, tailored to local need, to boost surgical capacity. Through this fund, our government has invested nearly $1 billion over 3 years and returned the surgical wait list to below pre-pandemic levels across the province.

The Government of Ontario is also investing over $7 million into Lakeridge Health through Alternative Levels of Care (ALC) and Patient Flow Initiatives. Patients who are designated ALC are usually waiting for a place elsewhere in the health system that provides the type of restorative, rehabilitative and supportive care they need. A hospital is not a home, and this investment will free up hospital beds so that people waiting for surgeries can get them sooner, ease pressures on crowded emergency departments by admitting patients sooner and will reduce ALC cases and support patient flow from Lakeridge Health to more appropriate settings in the Region of Durham, such as a long-term care homes.

“Our government is continuing to take bold, decisive action to build a health care system that provides Ontarians with the right care, in the right place,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, “With this new investment in Lakeridge Health, our government is ensuring patients in the Durham region can continue to connect to the care they need, close to home, for years to come.”

“This is an unprecedented time for health care across the region as Lakeridge Health builds an integrated acute care system to better serve people living and working throughout Durham Region”, said Lorne Coe, Parliamentary Assistant to the Premier and MPP for Whitby. These important investments will improve the patient experience and enhance access to those programs and services our community needs most.”

“We see the ripple effect that Alternative Levels of Care and Patient Flow Initiatives has on our overall healthcare system, making hospital beds unavailable to people who need care in a hospital setting,” said Ajax MPP Patrice Barnes. “The investment our government continues to make into Lakeridge Health ensures patients will continue to receive the support and care where and when they need it.”

“Connecting patients with direct access to care has never been more important, and I am proud to see our community benefiting once again from our government’s investments to improve public health in Durham,” said Todd McCarthy, MPP for Durham. “This funding of over $7 million for Lakeridge Health is a clear signal to our health sector partners, and all Ontarians, that our government continues to step up by delivering support and relief where help is needed most.”

“This crucial investment will empower our hospitals to boost surgical capacity, reducing surgical backlogs and wait times,” said Peter Bethlenfalvy, MPP for Pickering-Uxbridge. “Through such initiatives, we are prioritizing the well-being of our community, ensuring swift access to essential medical care.”

With Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, the province is expanding and modernizing Ontario’s hospitals to ensure patients and their families are able to connect to the quality care they need, when they need it, closer to home.

QUOTES

“Lakeridge Health is grateful to our provincial partners for their continued investment and commitment to the health of the people of Durham Region. These funds will help to ensure continued access to vital health-care services close to home and help our regional system of care to achieve its vision of One System. Best Health.”

Cynthia Davis, President and CEO, Lakeridge Health

QUICK FACTS

  • This year, Ontario has increased the Health Infrastructure Renewal Fund by over 14 per cent and the Community Infrastructure Renewal Fund by over 10 per cent.
  • Community health facilities are publicly funded and provide a range of programs to patients across the province, including primary care, community mental health and addictions services, allied health care such as physical therapy and respiratory therapy, and programs and services delivered by a public health unit.
  • Ontario’s investments over the next 10 years will lead to nearly $50 billion in health infrastructure across the province.
  • Ontario is getting shovels in the ground for over 50 hospital development projects that will build more than 3,000 new hospital beds in communities across the province over the next 10 years.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES