Ontario Connecting More People in Burlington to Mental Health Care

Ontario Connecting More People in Burlington to Mental Health Care

New mental health unit will make it faster and easier to access to mental health services closer to home

BURLINGTON — The Ontario government is making it faster and easier for people in the Burlington region to connect to high quality, comprehensive mental health and addiction support services closer to home by building a new mental health unit at the Joseph Brant Hospital.

“This new mental health unit will complement the incredible work Joseph Brant’s hardworking doctors, nurses and other staff do every day to provide high-quality care to the people of Burlington and the surrounding area,” said Premier Doug Ford. “I’m pleased that our government’s investment will support this work as part of our $50 billion worth of investments in more than 50 hospital projects province-wide, and I look forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on the community.”

The province’s investment will build and create a larger, state-of-the-art space for inpatient and outpatient services at Joseph Brant Hospital to ensure the hospital is better equipped to deliver timely and high-quality mental health and addictions care for more patients and their families, in a safe and comfortable setting.

Once opened, the new mental health unit will include:

• A new adult outpatient space better suited to improve clinical flow and patient care
• Improved adult psychiatric intensive care space allowing for better patient-centred care and safety
• Programs will include interdisciplinary teams of nurses, physicians, social workers, psychiatrists and recreation therapists to support complex patient care needs and provide crisis intervention, psychiatric assessment, treatment and stabilization
• Enhanced child and youth programming
• Improved infection prevention and control measures

“All Ontarians deserve to have convenient access to the care they need, when they need it, no matter where they live,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “By building a new mental health unit at Joseph Brant, our government is ensuring families in the Burlington region have faster access to mental health and addictions support services for years to come.”

As a next step, the ministry is working with Joseph Brant Hospital to complete early planning and design for this project. A construction schedule will be confirmed once future planning is complete and the project is tendered and awarded.

“Our government continues to address the critical need for timely, accessible, and comprehensive mental health and addiction services across Ontario,” said Michael Tibollo, Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions. “By investing in a state-of-the-art mental health unit at Joseph Brant Hospital, we are reinforcing the continuum of care, ensuring patients in Burlington and surrounding areas receive the specialized treatment and supports necessary for long-term recovery and improved quality of life.”

"As someone who cares deeply and values the role of mental healthcare in our community, I am profoundly grateful for this investment in the Joseph Brant Hospital Mental Health and Addictions unit,” said Natalie Pierre, MPP Burlington. “This investment will make a tangible difference in the lives of patients and their families in Burlington and surrounding areas, ensuring our healthcare professionals can continue to provide exceptional care to patients and those in need right here in our community."

"I am very excited that this project is moving forward. Redevelopment of our facilities will result in a more dignified, warm, and healing environment for the people who we serve, and increase access to mental health and addictions services for the people of Burlington and area." Said Eric Vandewall, President and CEO, Joseph Brant Hospital

Through Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, the Ontario government is making it easier and faster for people of all ages to connect to care. In 2020, the province introduced the Roadmap to Wellness, a plan to build a modern, world-class mental health and addictions care system. The government continues to introduce and expand on innovative new programs to ensure access to connected and convenient care to support the health and well-being of all Ontarians.

Quick Facts

• Joseph Brant Hospital is a full-service, academic community teaching hospital located in Burlington, serving residents in Burlington as well as the surrounding communities of Halton Region, Hamilton, Waterdown, Flamborough, and Stoney Creek.
• Over the next 10 years, Ontario’s investments will lead to nearly $50 billion in health infrastructure across the province, building 3,000 new beds in addition to over 3,500 critical care, acute and post-acute beds our government has added since 2020.
• The Ontario government is investing more than $228 million this year to support critical infrastructure upgrades and repairs at 129 hospitals and 58 community health care facilities across the province, a 10 per cent increase from last year.
• Ontario is investing $3.8 billion over 10 years to fill gaps in mental health and addictions care, create new services and expand programs through Roadmap to Wellness.
• Through the Roadmap to Wellness and the Addictions Recovery Fund the province is adding over 550 new addictions treatment beds to build capacity across the mental health and addictions sector.
• As part of Budget 2024, Building a Better Ontario, the government is building on its work through the Roadmap by investing an additional $396 million over three years to improve access and expand existing mental health and addictions services and programs.