Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare’s (MAHC) vision to reimagine local hospital care with two new hospitals in Muskoka is moving closer to reality. In April 2022, the Ford government announced support for MAHC to move ahead with the next stage of planning for two new hospitals: a new hospital on the existing land in Huntsville, and a new hospital at a new location in Bracebridge. Watch the announcement on YouTube.
From now to September 2023, more detailed program and service planning to meet our community’s future needs will occur to ensure our plans meet the growing health care needs of patients and families in Muskoka and East Parry Sound. With grant money provided by the Province of Ontario for the planning work (not new construction), MAHC is completing the next stage of the Ministry of Health’s capital planning process – this stage is known as Stage 1.3. Our goal is to submit what is known as the Functional Program in early 2024.
Stage 1.3 Functional Program
The work in this stage will be informed by volume projections looking out 10 to 20 years and the direct involvement of user groups. User groups will be made up of MAHC team members, patients, family members, caregivers, community partners and stakeholders. Through engagement sessions, user groups will be an essential part of our process, helping to describe future services, ensure models of care are up to date, innovative and sustainable, identifying the staffing required, and assisting in the detailed physical planning as the design process evolves. Lessons learned from the pandemic on clinical models and health human resources will also be considered as part of this process.
The work completed in this stage will result in block diagrams of the buildings and physical space needed to support the programs and services. Initial assumptions from previous work will be revisited to reflect how people receive care through various health services and regionally through more specialized health centres both today and in the future.
Site Selection
A site selection process for the South Muskoka site will be part of this stage of planning in line with the Ministry of Health’s Site Search Capital Planning Bulletin Guidelines, including size and access among other factors such as zoning and environmental regulations, access to services like water and sewer and electricity as well as public transportation, and travel distances to other health service providers. A comprehensive and transparent engagement process will occur with our communities to determine the most appropriate piece of land for a future hospital in Bracebridge.
| Minimum Land Requirements |
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| Viable Locations Under Current Evaluation |
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From more than one dozen initial potential properties, five have been determined to meet the minimum land requirements criteria:
28-72 Kirkhill Drive
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Preliminary Site Selection Criteria Categories |
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Location and Property — Determining the appropriateness of the potential location and broader surrounding context for a new hospital based on:
Land Use Planning Framework — Evaluating alignment with provincial, District and local municipal planning directions such as:
Capital and Servicing Costs — Assessing cost efficiency of development by considering:
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Project Cost and Local Share
The work in this stage will help us to better understand the cost of the future builds. We know that by the time we are at the stage of building the two new hospital sites, construction costs will have increased. The preliminary order of magnitude from the earlier planning stages will be updated to be more current to today’s economy, the changed environment and effects as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Before the Ministry of Health will agree to fund our project for the two new sites, we have to demonstrate the community’s ability to pay for its share of the new builds. The Ministry of Health will pay for most of the actual construction of a new building. The local community is expected to pay a share of the entire project, which can be up to 30% of the total project cost, including furnishings, fixtures and hospital equipment. The raising of the local share is a key focus of MAHC and our two hospital foundations, and one that we are fully committed to working through collaboratively with local municipalities and the community at large. If we are not able to commit to how the community will fund the local share, our project for two new hospital sites will not proceed. Learn more about our work to refine the community share.
Examples of costs paid for by the community's share include:
- a portion of construction cost of hospital
- equipment and technology
- furnishings and fixtures
- construction of revenue-generating space (i.e. parking lots)
- any land/property required, and land alterations including site servicing
- financing costs
Governance and Structure
The MAHC Board of Directors has formed a Capital Redevelopment Steering Committee to provide governance oversight. A Capital Redevelopment Operations Committee has also been established with members of MAHC’s Leadership Team, physician leaders, hospital foundation representatives and project consultants. Their purpose is to work through the Stage 1.3 requirements, reporting to and making recommendations to the Board’s steering committee. The user groups will be key to our work and our final submission and will include staff, physicians, volunteers, patients and families. These groups will ensure we understand what they will need and what services and spaces should look like.
Information Sharing and Consultation
Community engagement has been an essential part of the planning process to date. Feedback from internal and external stakeholders has shaped our plan for two new sites. There will be various ways that user input will continue to be obtained throughout this journey. Our success will rely on integrating feedback and insights from community partners, patients and families, and our staff, physicians and volunteers. We are committed to keeping our MAHC team and our greater community informed as we move forward. Don't forget you can subscribe to any of our webpages to receive updates by email by clicking on the green banner below.
Community Open Houses (January 2023)
MAHC was pleased to host six in-person and two virtual open houses to connect with our communities. A 30-minute presentation was provided using a slide deck and an information brochure was available. Community members could tour large poster boards and engage in conversation and questions and answers with representatives from our project team and consultants, hospital foundations and auxiliaries, Board of Directors, and Patient Experience Partners. MAHC looks forward to hosting a further round of community engagement to provide an update on the site selection process and progress on our Stage 1.3 deliverables.
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