New funding for hospitals in Southeastern Ontario

Patients and families across our region will soon benefit from additional funding for hospitals in Kingston and Brockville.

On March 23, MPP Sophie Kiwala held an event at Kingston Health Sciences Centre (KHSC) to announce that KHSC, Providence Care and Brockville General Hospital would be splitting an additional $11.6 million dollars in funding in the 2018-19 fiscal year.

KHSC will receive $8.2 million, Providence Care will receive $1.04 million, and Brockville General Hospital will be getting an additional $1.74 million. The funding is part of a commitment to invest an additional $822 million in hospitals across Ontario in the upcoming Provincial budget.

“This is great news for both Kingston and Brockville and the patients that rely on these hospitals,” said MPP Kiwala. “This funding will help increase the number of essential services in hospitals, and it will help decrease wait times.”

The funding is aimed at providing better access to care, reducing wait-times and helping address hospital capacity issues. This overall increase of 4.6 per cent in provincial hospital spending is on top of the additional 3.2 per cent provided by the Province last year.

“Healthcare is near and dear to the hearts of all Ontarians and we are happy to see the focus by the Provincial Government on this important issue,” said KHSC President and CEO Dr. David Pichora. “The population in our region is aging and their healthcare needs are becoming more complex. As a result, we have seen our patient volumes increase dramatically over the last several years. This increase in funding will mean that we will have more resources at our fingertips, to help meet the needs of our patients.”

The funding announcement comes on the heels of another financial boost this winter. In February, the Province announced that Ontario hospitals would receive an additional $187 million to provide support during the busy influenza season.

“We are committed to making sure hospitals have the resources and supports they need to meet the needs of growing and aging communities,” said Dr. Helena Jaczek, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. “With this historic investment, publicly funded hospitals can increase capacity, decrease wait times and improve access to care for families across Ontario.”