PRESS REL EASE

Greg Sorbara, M.P.P. For Immediate Release November 13, 2009

More Critical Care for Newborns York Region Hospitals Get Additional Neonatal Intensive Care Beds

VAUGHAN -- Ontario is adding new neonatal intensive care beds at York Central Hospital and Markham Stouffville Hospital to ensure more newborns can get better access to intensive care closer to home.

“Improving our capacity to provide safer care, closer to home, means better outcomes for new moms and babies alike,” said Vaughan MPP, Greg Sorbara. “Every parent wants to bring their new baby home as soon as possible. These new beds will help them do that.”

The four new beds are for babies that are born prematurely or at term with special medical needs and who require critical care. Ontario is adding 43 beds province-wide.

These new neonatal beds will help Ontario enhance maternal and neonatal care across the province and ensure that more moms and babies have access to this essential health care service.

QUOTES

“It’s crucial that we give Ontario’s most vulnerable babies the critical care supports they need to get better, faster. We want them to be at home with their parents, not in hospital.” – , Minister of Health and Long-Term Care

“The addition of four new neonatal intensive care beds will enhance our hospitals’ ability to continue to provide excellent, local care to our paediatric population. The distribution of these beds to York Central Hospital and Markham-Stouffville Hospital also illustrates the benefits of collaboration and planning on a system-level. Central LHIN worked with all of our hospitals to identify the locations where placement of these new resources would have the greatest impact, and most benefit our LHIN’s paediatric program overall. This will help us give more vulnerable babies the best possible start in life.” – Kim Baker, Chief Executive Officer of the Central Local Health Integration Network (LHIN).

LEARN MORE

For more information on programs and services visit:

York Central Hospital at www.yorkcentral.on.ca Markham Stouffville Hospital at www.msh.on.ca

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For further information contact:

Lorenzo Catuzza Office of Greg Sorbara, MPP 416-212-1022 140 Woodbridge Avenue, Unit AU8/9 – Vaughan, Ontario L4L 4K9 Tel: 905-851-0440 Fax: 905-851-0440