Some serious work is underway to establish a Windsor Health Institute.
Dr. Lisa Porter said the institute has been in the works since 2009 and will unite regional health services, create better patient care, produce better researchers, hopefully, attract more doctors and research funding, and diversify the local economy.
The institute will be a collaboration between the hospitals, the university and the college, if and when it gets off the ground.
Dr.Porter said the idea has been well received and the momentum keeps building.
"Research brings new access to drugs and new equipment. This is going to be the way to keep us at the cutting edge and I think we need to grow it," said Dr. Porter.
Porter hopes to have the institute running in about five years to integrate the local health system.
"With the new health care system, it isn't just bricks and mortar. It's developing a true integrated system that going to improve the quality of care for people in Windsor-Essex," she said.
Porter said the future of local health care relies on the institute being successful.
"We need to move forward, the time is now. The province isn't going to wait around for us and if we don't create a name for ourselves, we're going to get left behind," the doctor said.
The proposed institute does not require government approval.