Ontario gives St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton $5-million boost for expanded psychiatric emergency services
St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton officials have witnessed first-hand what the COVID-19 pandemic has done to the mental of people living in and around the Hamilton region.
We have seen the highest volumes this year of urgent care we have ever seen," said Melissa Farrell, president of St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton. It is imperative we increase our access of care, expand the service and provide better support for those in crisis."
Farrell said there has been about a 10 per cent spike in the number of people with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety, and health experts project people's mental health will continue to suffer long after COVID-19 physical effects dissipate.
The health facility is the second largest mental health provider in the province, serving 1.4 million people in Hamilton and the surrounding regions.
The increase in mental health services resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic is now being viewed as the echo pandemic," said Farrell.
Minister of Health Christine Elliott, accompanied by Flamborough-Glanbrook Progressive Conservative MPP Donna Skelly, announced April 4 outside St. Joseph's Charlton Avenue campus the province will be providing over $5 million to help expand its $10-million psychiatric emergency service.
The last two years have shown us we need a strong, more resilient system that includes mental health," said Elliott.
The provincial investment bolsters the $3.5 million in donations already made, including from the Sam and Roma Mercanti Foundation, CARSTAR, RBC Foundation, St. Elizabeth Home Society and SC Johnson, as well as an anonymous donor couple and LiUNA. Another $1 million was raised through various fundraising events such as the Around the Bay Road Race.
We've been waiting anxiously for today's announcement, because it will be a game changer for our community," said Farrell.
Samantha Mercanti, who has written a memoir detailing her own 20-year struggle with mental health issues, called Embracing Schizophrenia," applauded the investment by the community and the provincial government.
We need to give those in our community who are struggling with mental illness a respectable and safe place to receive care," said Mercanti. Every single person with a mental illness deserves the same opportunities as everyone else."
Dr. Maxine Lewis, the joint chief of mental health and additions of Niagara Health and St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton, said the new facility, growing from 3,700 to 7,700 square feet, will see the hospital double the number of patients it sees annually from about 4,000.
It will be like night and day," said Lewis. The care will be so completely different. This is so exciting."
The two new care areas will be a mental health emergency department serving patients who are experiencing severe mental health and addiction crises and need a specialized environment and a mental health assessment centre for people who will benefit from a quiet and less intensive environment.
We want to create a space that is both comforting and safe," said Lewis.
The renovation, which is expected to take two years to complete once the tenders are issued, will include bright and modern features to help encourage recovery, such as more windows to bring in outside light, natural finishes and colour schemes and dedicated spaces for families and loved ones.
Elliott's announcement came a day after Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath announced if the NDP wins the provincial election June 2, it will provide universal mental health coverage at a cost of about $1.15 billion.
While some forms of mental health treatment are covered by the province, such as treatment by a psychiatrist, a psychologist or social worker within a hospital, services such as private psychotherapy or counselling are not.
The Ontario Liberals are promising in their election platform to provide all Ontario workers with portable drug, dental and mental-health services.