The Ontario government is connecting communities throughout Georgian Bay and Simcoe Muskoka to mental health supports by investing in a new inpatient acute care unit at the Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care. The new unit will expand access to specialized urgent mental health and addictions services, making it faster and easier for people and their families to connect to care closer to home.
“All Ontarians deserve to receive convenient care close to home, no matter where they live,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “By investing in a new inpatient acute care unit at Waypoint, our government is ensuring that people in the Georgian Bay region will have faster access to specialized mental health services and supports, when and where they need it most.”
This investment will support planning and construction to renovate over 10,000 square feet of existing space at Waypoint. Once complete, the new acute mental health inpatient unit will add an additional 20 beds to the facility and connect more people and their families in the region to a team of health care professionals that provide a full range of services in the main campus, including psychiatry, psychology, occupational and recreation therapy, and addictions counselling.
“Our government continues to take action to build a recovery-oriented continuum of care for mental health and addictions that serves the unique needs of people across the province,” said Michael Tibollo, Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, “With this new inpatient unit at Waypoint, those in the region who are in need of immediate and urgent mental health care will be able to quickly access it.”
Ontario is working with Waypoint to continue to advance this project. As a next step, a fair, open, and transparent tender process is expected to begin in the new year with construction starting shortly after.
Through Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, Ontario is helping connect more Ontarians to convenient care to support mental health and wellness, closer to home.
