Construction is underway to build a new reactivation care centre in Hamilton.

The new facility, which will be operated in partnership with St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and Hamilton Health Sciences, will provide people who no longer require hospital care with restorative and specialty care.

“Our government is making historic investments in Ontario’s health care system to expand access to care and make it faster and easier for people to connect to the care they need, closer to home,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “The new Reactivation Care Centre will ensure more patients and their families in the Hamilton area are connected to the care and support they need, for years to come.”

The Ontario government will invest more than $16 million to build the facility. Once opened, the new 28,000 square-feet centre will include 57 transitional care beds across three units to connect people to a variety of reactivation care needs, including complex care, dementia care services and behavioural support services. The new facility will also have four rooms with dialysis services, allowing more patients to access convenient, on-site hemodialysis treatment.

“This Reactivation Care Centre offers a unique opportunity to provide a continuity of care to patients who need more time to recover, while freeing up much-needed space in our hospital to provide acute care to more patients, faster,” said Mike Heenan, President, St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton. “We are so grateful to the province for recognizing this need and for their investment into our community.”

Reactivation care is an innovative model of care that provides people with a seamless transition from hospital to their community care providers when they no longer require hospital care. This ensures more hospital beds are there for those who need it most, while decreasing wait times to ensure more people, no matter where they are in their care journey, are receiving the care they need.

The province is investing more than $228 million this year to support critical infrastructure upgrades and repairs at 129 hospitals and 58 community health care facilities.

In the Hamilton region, the government is also getting shovels in the ground for hospital projects including the St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton psychiatric emergency service redevelopment, Hamilton General Hospital’s emergency department expansion, and the West Lincoln Memorial Hospital redevelopment.