The mayor of Whitby is urging her citizens to write to Premier Doug Ford to urge him to move forward on plans to build a new hospital in the municipality.
"The reality is that Lakeridge Health Hospital System can't keep up with the current demand," said Mayor Elizabeth Roy at a press conference Wednesday at the site in Whitby where she hopes a new hospital will be built. "The pressures today are worse than during the pandemic. In recent months, we have seen overcrowding emergencies. We have excessively long wait times, patients and unfunded beds, and patients waiting up to three days to be admitted to a hospital — it's unacceptable."
The town has launched a website that allows residents to write directly to the premier, either signing the town's call-to-action letter or sharing their own personal message of support for a new hospital.
In January 2022, an expert panel appointed by Lakeridge Health selected land in Whitby — 50 acres south of Highway 407, west of Highway 412, east of Lake Ridge Road and north of Highway 7 — owned by the Ministry of Transportation. The hospital system chose it over other options, including a site in Pickering preferred by that city's mayor, Kevin Ashe.
"The location is easily accessible due to its proximity to major existing highways and roadways, as well as planned public transit. Its location in central Durham Region will help to serve residents across the region," the panel said at the time.
But since then, the province has not taken the next step toward construction, awarding Lakeridge Health a planning grant.
"For two years, there has been nothing but inaction," said Roy. "Two years is too long."
Last March, Ashe told The Trillium that he was advocating for the hospital to be built in Pickering with Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy, whose riding includes Pickering.
“I’ve spoken to him about Pickering’s desire to have a facility, and he’s aware of that, and I’ve advocated for that,” said Ashe at the time, and mentioned his "excellent working relationship" with the minister.
Pickering’s preferred site is part of a proposed development of a planned community called "Veraine." Its developers, the Northeast Pickering Landowners’ Group, have promised to donate the land. However, the housing project itself is controversial because it would see the environmentally sensitive Carruthers Creek headwaters in northeast Pickering developed.
It was marked for development in the region's latest official plan, though the official plan itself has yet to be approved by the province.
For her part, Roy said she hopes politics aren't at play in the province's decision on the hospital.
"I don't think that putting politics into health care is something that's in the best interest for us all," she said, adding that she's been working with her local MPP, Progressive Conservative Lorne Coe, on getting answers from the government.
A spokesperson for Health Minister Sylvia Jones declined to give a reason for why the project has stalled.
"We recognize that Whitby was recommended through community consultation as the preferred site of the new Lakeridge Hospital," said Hannah Jensen. "We will continue to work closely with Lakeridge Health and other partners on the next round of planning grants for this project to deliver more connected, convenient care in the Durham Region for years to come."
In the meantime, Roy is continuing to urge her citizens to write to the province ahead of the 2024 budget, which is expected in March. The Town of Whitby has even set up a prize draw for participants in its letter-writing campaign, offering an Apple Watch with a "midnight" sports band, a 12-month Town of Whitby Health Club family membership, and two "get active prize packs" that include a backpack, swim towel and activity passes.
Roy said the town uses this tactic to increase participation in campaigns seeking input from the community on its priorities, such as the town's recent strategic plan.
"The number one priority was health care — it was physician recruitment, it was the acquiring of the land for the hospital," she said. "It was the number one priority of all ages that participated."
