Following an investment of up to $2.13 billion by the Government of Ontario, Humber River Hospital, the first fully digital hospital in North America, is opening its doors to Toronto patients on October 18.
The state-of-the-art facility will consolidate acute care services that are currently delivered at three separate sites. It will also allow the automation of routine processes, such as the delivery of non-narcotic drugs and supplies by robots; diagnostic images such as MRI scans will be charted immediately; and self-serve kiosks will allow patients to check themselves in, automate patient records and notify care teams that the patient has arrived.
Along with the new facilities, patients will have access to an expanded capacity of 656 beds; expanded ambulatory, emergency and critical care services; modern diagnostics equipment for more accurate treatment; and updated infectious disease control systems to monitor and prevent a broad range of infections.
Construction on the hospital, which was designed and built to adhere to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, began in September 2011. The 1.8 million square foot facility will provide healthcare services to over 850,000 people in the northwestern Greater Toronto Area.
“This is a significant and exciting milestone for health care in Ontario. North America’s first digital hospital will help put patients first by providing better access to high quality health care services in a modern, high-tech facility,” said Dr. Eric Hoskins, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, in a press release.
The government’s investment is part of Infrastructure Ontario’s commitment to contribute over $130 billion over 10 years to public infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, transit, hospitals and schools. The Ontario government plans to invest over $11 billion in hospital capital grants over 10 years to provide adequate infrastructure capacity in the healthcare sector.
