Screenshot of the opening slide from the presentation at Friday's full city council meeting (Regional Municipality of Waterloo)
The presidents of St. Mary's General Hospital and Grand River Hospital are due to provide an update on the future of health care to all provincial councils on Friday.
The hospitals said they were still in discussions about where the hospital would be located but expected to announce a selection in the coming months. In May, the hospitals confirmed they had narrowed the site down to two options.
With the region's population expected to grow to 923,000 by 2051, the two hospitals are collaborating on a number of initiatives, with the greatest needs including increasing capacity, updating existing infrastructure and addressing health equity.
Over the past year, the two hospitals have added more than 200 permanent beds and expanded clinical, diagnostic imaging and laboratory services.
In April, the hospitals' boards announced the two hospitals would merge, with the official merger expected by spring 2025. Ron Gagnon of Grand River Hospital said there are many benefits to merging.
“We already have a shared hospital information system, we share information about patients, we have multiple departments with a minimum of unified leadership and integrated services,” Gagnon said.
A community town hall was held June 18th to get community feedback and provide an update on the merger.
St. Mary's General Hospital is also looking to engage with local residents about the future of the current site in the fall.
The full council meeting is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.
