Ontario is providing a planning grant of up to $5 million to the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) to help plan for upgrades and improvements to the hospital to provide the best access to quality healthcare.

The hospital plans to improve infrastructure, invest in new technology and develop a coordinated network within the province’s health care system. These grants provide funding for early planning stages ahead of a build, but does not necessarily mean approval has been given to begin construction.

“The Hospital for Sick Children is an important community partner and a world leader in paediatric care,” said Han Dong, MPP for Trinity-Spadina, in a press release. “I am very happy that SickKids is able to move forward with planning critical hospital infrastructure that will ensure children and their families continue to experience the highest levels of care today and in the future. I am proud of our government’s commitment to continue investing in hospitals across Ontario.”

SickKids, one of the world’s largest and most respected paediatric hospitals, provides complex and specialized services to children. A planning grant will help provide resources for hospitals to work within their Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care to ensure a project will work for the facility in terms of scope and scale.