by Rhonda Massad
It was a sunny day on the West Island both outside the Lakeshore General Hospital and inside where four new intensive care beds were inaugurated on January 30.
The new facilities, equipped with the latest technology, represent the Phase 1 of a project to reconfigure and integrate the ICU and cardiology units. The project is financed by the Lakeshore General Hospital Foundation (LGHF), thanks to $2 million donation made by the Trottier Foundation. The two phases of the project are evaluated to be a $4.9 million undertaking, which will need to be raised through public donations. The ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux is allocating the budget to cover the operating costs.
“The addition of four ICU rooms will help ease the overcrowding in the emergency room and let us save 270 more lives each year,” said Executive Director of LGHF Heather Holmes.
While Phase 1 of the project has brought four new ICU beds and state-of-the-art equipment essential to the quality of care offered to patients, Phase 2 will bring the reconfiguration of the space to reflect current best practices, the consolidation of all 8 cardiology beds on the 2nd floor, and the amalgamation of vital care expertise in one efficient multifunctional location.
“This major announcement represents a substantial move forward in terms of the services offered to the West Island population and bears witness to the success of our collaborative efforts in recent years,” said president and CEO Benoit Morin. “Thanks to donations from the Trottier family and the Lakeshore General Hospital Foundation, not only will we see the authorized increase of our Intensive Care capacity by four new rooms, but the overall infrastructure of our IC facility will be rebuilt to offer a clinical environment among the best equipped in Quebec.”
The inauguration was attended by several elected representatives, MNA Jacques-Cartier Geoffrey Kelley, MNA Robert-Baldwin, Carlos Leitao and Pointe Claire Mayor Morris Trudeau.
