Barrie Memorial Hospital Will Remain Open During Renovations

On the morning of Thursday, July 7th MNA Stéphane Billette, Barrie Memorial Hospital Foundation president Madeleine Greig and President-Director General of the Centre intégré de santé et de services sociaux (CISSS) de la Montérégie-Ouest Yves Masse addressed the community’s concerns regarding recent changes to the Barrie Memorial Hospital in Ormstown—most noticeably the construction, which can be seen from the building’s entrance. The hospital, which serves as a part of the CISSS, is over 75 years old.

During the press conference, Billette confirmed a 2.2 million dollar investment in the hospital, citing the Minister of Health and Social Services as a financial supporter with a contribution of over 1.2 million to the project. The renovations, which began in June, will aim to improve the overall security of the hospital, as well as provide the exterior of the building with a facelift. Fixes will include the replacement of the paging system, improvements to the original filtration system, the installation of sprinklers and the refurbishing of certain parts of the hospital. Billette also went on to assure those present that the hospital would continue to operate as usual, remaining open during the renovations. “It’s a big day for the hospital with these major investments,” said Billette. “We’ll have a 2.2 million investment in the infrastructure of the Barrie.” The hospital has not seen the likes of such a contribution since 2010. Before he concluded his speech, he thanked the employees of the hospital for their hard work.

“The Barrie Memorial Hospital Foundation is very proud to contribute to the financing of this project that will benefit the users and the employees who mostly reside in our community,” said Greig of the $485,000 donated by the foundation to the hospital. The rest of the costs are being covered by the hospital. Masse also expressed his confidence in the project, ensuring all that business would continue as usual at the hospital.