Plans for new Orillia hospital quashed by spring budget

Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital in Orillia, Ont. (CTV News)

There are areas of Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital (OSMH) that are more than 100 years old.

OSMH has been discussing the need for a new hospital in Orillia with the Ontario government.

A March 15th site visit from Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, highlighted the successes of the local Couchiching Ontario Health Team, despite the challenges the hospital is facing serving a growing community in aging infrastructure.

“While we are disappointed the province did not include a capital planning grant for the hospital in this year’s budget to modernize healthcare for our rapidly growing community, we are optimistic about our future,” said Carmine Stumpo, OSMH President and CEO.

“We will continue to work with our community and the ministry of health to chart a path for a new hospital in Orillia.”

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In the interim, the Orillia hospital will accept the Ontario government’s investment of a 4% funding increase for hospitals in the spring 2023 budget.

This funding will help ensure that patients continue to receive the quality care they expect and deserve.

“The specific details of the funding have not been released, but the increase is further acknowledgment of the rapid growth we’ve felt in Orillia, and we anticipate the funding will help support beds we’ve added in just the past few years to meet community need,” said Stumpo.

OSMH has been operating beyond the physical capacity of its current building and has the oldest hospital infrastructure in the region, with parts of our hospital aging 101 years old. According to the Ontario Hospital Association, OSMH had the highest occupancy rate of all medium and large-sized hospitals in Ontario in 2021/2022.

In addition, the community’s population has grown twice as fast as the rest of Ontario over the past five years. It’s projected to climb by nearly 45% over the next 25 years.

OSMH continues to call on the government for a planning grant to build a new hospital and will work with the province to ensure the patients of Orillia and beyond have access to the care they deserve.

For Your Information:

• OSMH is currently operating at 141% of the baseline funded bed count, which has pushed it well over the physical capacity of the current building.
• Orillia’s population has grown twice as fast as the rest of Ontario over the past five years.
• It’s projected to keep climbing by nearly 45% over the next 25 years.
• OSMH’s emergency department is significantly undersized when compared to the growth of its community.
• A new acute care hospital would allow OSMH to increase bed and care capacity. Specifically, critical care resources, the number of ICU beds and inpatient beds, and provide more services to the women and children of the community.