Province announces support for Phase 2 Redevelopment

KHSC’s Phase 2 Redevelopment Project has received a major endorsement as Minister of Health and Long-Term Care Dr. Eric Hoskins announced the Provincial Government’s support of the project during a media event at our Kingston General Hospital site.

“Having access to high-quality care is part of what makes a community a great place to live. Our government’s investment in the redevelopment of Kingston Health Sciences Centre will expand critical health services and ensure the community’s health care needs remain available close to home,” said Minister Hoskins.

Phase 2 Redevelopment will include the construction of an eight story tower on Stuart Street that will be home to a brand new Emergency Department (ED), Operating Rooms, Clinical Labs, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Labour and Delivery unit, as well as a new IT Data Centre.

“Our redevelopment vision is an ambitious one and I would like to thank Minister Hoskins, MPP Sophie Kiwala, the Provincial Government and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care for their continued support of the patients and families of Southeastern Ontario,” said KHSC CEO Dr. David Pichora.

It will be one of the biggest and most complex infrastructure projects in Kingston’s history and will allow KHSC to continue to meet our regional mandate as Southeastern Ontario’s leader in providing complex, acute and specialty care. 

“I am so proud of the excellent work that our health care professionals perform every day and night in Kingston,” said MPP Kiwala. “The commitment today by the Ontario government, towards the revitalization and rebuild of the Kingston Health Sciences Centre (KHSC), will make a tremendous impact in our community and the patients we will serve in the future. This could not have happened without teamwork, collaboration and outstanding leadership by many individuals for several years. This new revitalized facility will help us serve our communities health care needs better, it will improve the patient experience and we will continue to be able to attract top of the line students and staff to this region.”

Teams across the hospital have been busy for the past year talking to patients and families, staff and physicians to help understand what they’ll need in these new spaces and developing plans which will include detailed information and architectural drawings that will guide our work over the next several years.

“This project will allow us to maximize quality and safety for patients and be innovative in our adoption of new procedures and technology for the future,” said Pichora. “We will also be able to work with our educational partners at Queen's University and St. Lawrence College to fulfill our academic role in healthcare education, training and research.”

KHSC will need the help of the community to turn our vision into a reality. The University Hospitals Kingston Foundation has been actively fundraising for this project and will be working with a team of dedicated campaign volunteers to secure the remaining funds needed for the “local share” costs of Redevelopment. This is typically 10 per cent of the cost of construction and 100 per cent of equipment for the new facilities.

“The support of donors from across our region will be vitally important to the future success of our Redevelopment project. We would like to also thank those who have already contributed, as well as the many other generous supporters whose gifts will be announced in the weeks ahead,” said Pichora.

Before construction can begin there will be several other approval steps with the Ministry as KHSC continues to move through further design stages. If all goes well, construction could begin as early as 2020.