Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, Sydenham Campus ER in Wallaceburg. (BlackburnNews.com file photo)Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, Sydenham Campus ER in Wallaceburg. (BlackburnNews.com file photo)
Chatham

Renewal Coming To Wallaceburg's Hospital

The Chatham-Kent Health Alliance is looking at expanding services in Wallaceburg but it still needs provincial funding to do it.

Chief Financial Officer Jerome Quenneville says the Wallaceburg hospital desperately needs a satellite dialysis service and more ambulatory services.

That's on top of keeping the Wallaceburg emergency department open 24-7.

Quenneville says the Wallaceburg community really needs a dialysis service because there's a wait list.

"Right now there's about 10 patients on the wait list and people are going to London, Windsor and Sarnia for service rather than being able to stay closer to home," says Quenneville.

Plans are also underway to eventually replace the hospital in Wallaceburg and renovate the old section of the Chatham hospital to extend its life before major improvements down the road.

Quenneville says doing all that capital work at once would cost about $500-million, which is money the hospital just doesn't have right now.

Quenneville hopes to see expanded ambulatory services in Wallaceburg very soon.

"Trying to extend their expertise out to that area and we're really encouraging that. We're really hopeful and hopefully we're able to get some announcements on that sooner rather than later," Quenneville says.

Quenneville says CKHA also wants to replace the aging hospital in Wallaceburg one section at a time over the next 20 years.

"Renew some of the areas and take down some of the old and over time, 15 or 20 years, eventually get to a point where we have essentially a new facility in Wallaceburg," says Quenneville.

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