TORONTO – The Ontario government is improving health care planning for Halton Hills residents by transferring operation of the Georgetown hospital site from William Osler Health Centre to Halton Healthcare Services, Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman announced today.

This will improve the planning and co-ordination of health services for Halton residents because Georgetown is located in the same Mississauga-Halton Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) as the Oakville and Milton hospital sites of Halton Healthcare Services, whereas the Etobicoke and Brampton sites of William Osler Health Centre are located in the Central West LHIN

"This is precisely the kind of better integration that LHINs were designed to provide," Smitherman said. "By transferring the operation of Georgetown hospital to Halton Healthcare Services, the LHIN will be better able to plan for the future needs of Halton Hills residents."

As part of the government's plan for health care in Ontario, 14 LHINs are being created to improve the planning and delivery of health care services in local communities. LHINs are non-profit organizations responsible for planning, integrating and funding local health services including hospitals, home care, long-term care, mental health as well as addiction and community support services within a specific geographic area. Through LHINs, key health care decisions that are currently made centrally at the ministry in Toronto will be made at a local level by people who live in the communities served.

"We respect the ministry's desire to align the Georgetown campus with an organization in the Mississauga-Halton LHIN boundary," said Bryan Held, Board Chair for William Osler Health Centre. Held adds, "It is not easy to see the Georgetown campus moved from the hospital network we have worked hard to develop over the past seven years. The unique blend of professionalism, skills, compassionate patient care and small-town values our colleagues bring to the Halton Hills community is very much valued by our organization. We will work with Halton Healthcare to facilitate and implement the ministry's decision responsibly and professionally to ensure a smooth transition for our patients, staff, physicians and volunteers."

"We are committed to working with the community of Halton Hills and the staff, physicians and volunteers at Georgetown Hospital to ensure the residents of Halton Hills continue to have access to quality healthcare services and programs," said Shavak Madon, Board Chair, Halton Healthcare Services. "Georgetown Hospital has a long history of providing quality and compassionate patient care and a strong commitment to the community it serves. We are confident those strengths will be fostered and grown as part of Halton Healthcare Services. The development of the Local Health Integration Networks is designed to improve the planning and delivery of healthcare services. We are looking forward to working with the Ministry of Health and representatives from William Osler to ensure the success of our local LHIN and a smooth transition for the residents of Halton Hills."

"While the sign in front of the Georgetown hospital will eventually change, the quality of services offered inside will not," said Smitherman. "As a result of these changes we feel certain that patients who depend on Halton Healthcare Services and William Osler Health Centre will continue to be very well served."

For further information :

Members of the general public : (416) 327-4327, or (800) 268-1154

© Queen's Printer for Ontario, 2003  |  Privacy Policy  |  Disclaimers  |   Last Modified :