Ontario Construction New staff writer
The Ontario government will partially fund construction of a new Integrated Treatment Centre at CHEO, a pediatric health and research centre in Ottawa.
The multi-storey building called ‘1Door4Care’ will reduce the need for families to travel to multiple facilities to gain access to critical treatment and rehabilitation services such as occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech and language pathology, and autism services.
Last week’s announcement reconfirms the government’s support of the project which got the green light for construction in March 2021.
Officials call the project “a game changer” and the province previously commitment of $105 million to for architects to design a space that re-imagines how to deliver integrated health care to kids and teens in our community. That work is now complete – including geotechnical analysis, functional planning, architectural drawings and more.
The next step is for Infrastructure Ontario to initiate the procurement process to find a builder, with a goal of putting shovels in the ground next year.
The 1door4care building will merge seven care locations, currently spread across Ottawa, into a single, state-of-the-art, purpose-built site on CHEO’s main campus at Smyth Road. It will include multi-use clinic space, a physiotherapy rehab gym, expanded mental health clinics, indoor and outdoor space where teachers and therapists combine education and therapy, secure space for children who have been abused, state-of-the-art treatment rooms for kids with behavioural issues, advanced technology to enable virtual care, a physical link to the main building on campus and family support spaces.
“Our government is getting shovels in the ground on critical infrastructure, including hospitals, highways, housing and high-speed internet,” said Peter Bethlenfalvy, finance minister.
“By investing to expand our hospital infrastructure, we are protecting our progress against the COVID-19 pandemic and building for the future.”
Funding CHEO’s new Integrated Children’s Treatment Centre building is part of the 2021 Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review: Build Ontario.
The government recently announced an additional $240 million in funding over four years to reduce waitlists and build additional service capacity for early intervention and rehabilitation services for children and youth with special needs.
“This new building is going to bring care teams, family supports and technology under one roof so 40,000 kids and their families get the care they need – when, where and how they need it. Eastern Ontario get ready, we can’t wait to deliver,” said Alex Munter, president and CEO of CHEO.