The city of Orillia will soon be home to its first hospice.
The facility will offer care and programs to help people living their final days, and provide peace and comfort to their families.
“We could have used a hospice for the last ten years,” says Si Lowry, Mariposa House Hospice. “We are short on hospital beds. We don’t have any palliative care beds at our hospital, and home care in the community is stretched beyond its limits.”
The capital campaign has already raised $2.5-million towards its $3.5-million goal.
The new five-bed hospice will be free of charge to residents in the area who need care. It will also help to reduce the waiting list at Hospice Simcoe in Barrie.
“We have about 80 to 90 people on a referral list that are waiting at some point in time to either come here or have this as their backup plan,” says Hospice Simcoe’s Kelly Hubbard.
Construction on the new facility at 1140 Brodie Drive is set to begin in the spring with the hope of opening the doors by next fall.
