‘Beaming’ with excitement

WLMH Foundation celebrates new hospital with beam-signing event

Dr. Joan Bellaire figures she signs her name at least 1,000 times a year for work. But on Nov. 23, her signature felt extra special because it was signed on the last beam needed to build the new West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH).

“It was an honour to put my name on the beam,” says Bellaire, medical director for WLMH.

“This hospital has been the heart of our community for many years. It was special to see the community come together to leave their mark on the hospital that will serve the people of West Niagara for many decades to come.”

A beam-signing ceremony is a tradition in the construction industry marking a milestone in the construction process — the placement of the final steel beam needed to complete a building’s framework. Before the beam is placed, it’s signed by the project’s team members and supporters.

“It’s amazing to think that by signing the beam I am a part of WLMH’s history and future at the same time.” — Doris Franklin, WLMH registered respiratory therapist.

With construction of the new WLMH rapidly progressing, the project finally embarked on this exciting milestone, calling for the WLMH Foundation to gather supporters and friends to sign their name on the beam before it was finally hoisted.

“It has been an honour working with the most generous and dedicated community over the past 24 years as we worked towards this goal,” says Pamela Ellens, CEO of WLMH Foundation. “It is really special to now see the construction of the new hospital.”

A celebration of community

The celebration kicked off with a ceremony attended by staff, partners and supporters, including EllisDon, Infrastructure Ontario, and community leaders such as Grimsby Mayor Jeff Jordan, West Lincoln Mayor Cheryl Ganann, MP Dean Allison, Foundation Chair Kevin Antonides, and Take it to the Finish Line Campaign Chair Andrew Smith.

Community and staff members were invited to drop by on Nov. 23 and 24 to add their names to the beam. Doris Franklin, who has served as a registered respiratory therapist at WLMH since 2003, was among the many staff members and physicians who took part.

“What an exciting day,” says Franklin.  “It’s been a long-time coming. This is something we’ve been dreaming about since I began working at the hospital. It’s amazing to think that by signing the beam I am a part of WLMH’s history and future at the same time.

I’ll forever cherish the many amazing memories made in the original WLMH, but I look forward to continuing my career and providing care to my community in our new hospital.”

With support from generous donors and surrounding municipalities that raised $50-million to meet provincial funding requirements, the project broke ground in April 2022 and is slated to open in mid-2025.

Partnering with patients

‘It’s a fabulous opportunity’ says WLMH volunteer patient advisor

Providing health care is the core business of hospitals. It is good practice that patients – the recipients of that care – are involved in planning and quality improvement. More and more, patients across Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) are taking part in how care is designed and delivered.

“Patients and families need to be at the table,” said Dawn Sidenberg, manager of patient experience at HHS. “Everything we do impacts the patient or their family. So, if it impacts them, shouldn’t they be included in the process to improve what we do?”

The most direct way patients get involved is by becoming a Patient and Family Advisor with the hospital. Advisors are volunteers who take part in a diverse range opportunities across the hospital system, bringing their lived experience as a patient or family member of a patient and building that into plans, policies and processes aiming to improve future patient care and experience.

“Our advisors have a wide range of experiences and are truly valued. The value is reflected in the input we have received and implemented into projects to date,” said Sidenberg.

At West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH), advisors are needed across the site, but have the unique opportunity of helping design care in the existing hospital, while also planning for the new one being built.

“We’re at a critical point in the evolution of this site,” said Catherine Duffin, director of community programs and site administrator at WLMH. “We have the opportunity to look at how care is currently provided while also asking what kind of environment we want to create in the new hospital. Are processes working? What should stay the same and what could change? We need to integrate families into these discussions so when we open the doors on the new hospital, it’s the best possible experience for everyone.”

Patient voices are already being actively heard in this work. Ellen Marginson spent much of her career as a social worker in the hospital environment and was encouraged to sign up to become a patient and family advisor by a family member.

“I was working at McMaster Children’s Hospital when the new pediatric emergency department was being constructed, so I got to see the process as an employee. Being a member of the community is a different but equally important way to approach this project which will impact the community for many years,” said Marginson, who is part of the operational readiness planning group for the new hospital.

No professional health care experience is required to become a patient advisor, just recent experience as a patient or a family member of a patient at an HHS site. Marginson encourages others in the community to step forward and raise their voice.

“As a member of the community, I think it’s a fabulous opportunity to have a say in how our local hospital grows and how it functions. When I speak to others, I say that ‘this is our time.’ Once the hospital is built, the opportunity won’t always be there. This is our opportunity to have a say.”

The demand for patient and family advisors is strong across HHS. As volunteers, advisors determine what time commitment makes sense and what type of opportunities interest them. For those who want more involvement, advisors can take part in established committees. An example being the family council at McMaster Children’s Hospital which meets regularly to discuss and advise on programming and potential changes affecting pediatric care. Advisors have also been embedded into time-limited capital projects, like the stem cell therapy unit expansion at Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre which opened in 2020. Many opportunities also exist on a casual basis, like reviewing and editing patient information materials for readability or looking at design and placement of signage at hospital sites. All input is valued and respected

Increasingly, HHS is seeing great success bringing patient advisors into early phase project design. A concept called “co-design.”

“Co-design is when a patient advisor is paired up with a clinical team looking to address an operational challenge. They are fully embedded with the team from the beginning, figuring out the challenges and putting a plan in place to create a change or a solution together. These usually start as pilot projects for a certain period of time and decisions are made about making them permanent. Our experience shows that patient advisors working in this collaborative way is absolutely instrumental toward creating a great outcome,” said Sidenberg.

A recent success story is the essential care partner program. During the pandemic, visitors were restricted for periods of time to reduce the number of people in the hospital. This naturally impacted patients’ experience while in hospital care. A project team, including a patient advisor, was assembled and a framework for identifying essential care partners was designed. It is now being piloted on two hospital units (one at Juravinski site, one at Hamilton General site) with promising results.

“If we only come at our work from one perspective – the provider perspective – we’re missing a vital piece. Our care providers are experts and great at what they do. Patients are experts, too,” said Sidenberg.

Anyone interested in becoming a patient and family advisor can find more information on HHS’ website or they can contact the Office of Patient Experience at patientexperience@hhsc.ca.

‘It’s been a busy year’

WLMH marks anniversary of ground-breaking

So much has happened since the end of last April when hospital and community members gathered at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH) to break ground on the long-awaited new hospital.

“It’s been a busy year,” said Kelly Campbell, vice-president corporate services and capital development at Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS). “From the moment the contract with our build partner (EllisDon Infrastructure Healthcare) was signed, crews started working to prepare the site for construction. The site has been bustling with activity every day since.”

The site required a number of projects to be completed prior to construction starting, including the relocation and demolition of a few existing structures. Read more about all of the site early works here.

With a relatively blank canvas to build on, activity ramped up in the early fall. More and more trades reported to the site daily, working on the future build and finalizing access routes for construction vehicles while updating some operational elements of the existing hospital, like the existing emergency department ramp. The year ended off with the tower crane installation.

“WLMH is a pretty tight site which can create challenges to maintain hospital operations while construction is going on. Lots of planning, energy and attention to detail has been required to ensure that first and foremost, patients and patient transport have uninterrupted access to the existing hospital,” said Campbell.

Exhibits and milestones

The project has continued to pick up steam in 2023. In March, site staff and physicians got a sneak peek at new spaces in the future hospital through a time-limited room mock up exhibit.

“The high fidelity mock ups were a great opportunity for the people who will be working in the new hospital to get a sense of the design and layouts. It will have a completely different look and feel from the existing hospital which people are used to, so it helps everyone visualize what it will be like,” said Campbell.

Earlier this month, the project crossed another important progress marker with the pouring of the first slab. Concrete columns now outline the new building as the hospital is starting to take shape.

Transition planning underway

It may or may not come as a surprise that moving an entire hospital (and patients) into a new building takes considerable planning. This process, commonly known as “operational readiness” in the health sector, involves looking at every piece of hospital operations, from what equipment needs to move and when, to scheduling appointments in the new building.

“Operational readiness is really thinking about how we are going to live and function in the new building,” says Jennifer Robinson, project manager at HHS leading operational planning. “What does the staffing look like, patient flow and day-to-day operations? Which existing policies and processes will need to change? That all gets organized now so as we get closer to move-in, we have a solid plan for a seamless transition from the old building to the new one.”

A committee has been established to guide this work, made up of hospital experts from many clinical and administrative specialties. The focus of this process will change as the project gets closer and closer to opening the doors on the new hospital.

“One year from now – which will be about one year from occupancy – we will really start focusing on transition, like ramping up and ramping down and in what sequence. For example, once we have the all clear to move in, Security and Facilities teams will move in first to set up safety procedures and infrastructure. Our detailed planning will drill into when other support services move in; all in preparation to support the patient move-in day and balance patient services on site,“said Robinson.

WLMH in 2022: Momentous milestones and crossing finish lines

Each year at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH) feels more momentous than the last. This is worth celebrating, considering all that has happened during the past few years.

It is no secret that hospitals everywhere are facing incredible challenges, particularly related to staffing shortages made worse by three difficult years navigating the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this setback, staff and physicians across Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS), including WLMH, continue to move major projects forward and meet the needs of the communities we serve.

There is a long list of milestones arising from 2022:

• Ground is broken on the new hospital. Decades of community and hospital advocacy, and years of planning led to a moment this fall when the soil officially turned and excavation commenced. That long-awaited symbol of progress has finally arrived.
• Babies are once again gracing the halls of WLMH after a temporary program hiatus. The maternal service’s return required many helping hands from inside and outside the hospital, but it is now better set up for long-term growth and success. The return brought many familiar faces back to the site and will include the largest team of obstetricians and gynecologists in the program’s history.
• Exponential growth continues in the site’s day surgery program. The innovative Surgeon of the Week initiative really hit its stride this year, bringing a team of specialists from across HHS to see patients and provide a wide range of specialty procedures at WLMH. Operating rooms at WLMH are currently running at 100 per cent of pre-pandemic surgical activity.
• HHS launched the largest transformational initiative in the hospital’s history, implementing our new digital health information system. Through its app, called MyChart, patients have more control than ever in managing their appointments, communicating with care providers and accessing their medical history.

All of these are great achievements that can stand on their own. However, possibly the most momentous milestone at WLMH this year took place outside of the hospital.

It happened in the homes and businesses and recreation centres and parks and festivals and places of worship where members of the community came together and made the critical decision to financially support the new hospital. The Take It To The Finish campaign – led by the West Lincoln Memorial Hospital Foundation and its campaign team – achieved the fundraising target needed to support a rebuilt WLMH. Significant commitments from municipal and regional government partners (as well as past donations) got the ball rolling, and the community took it across the finish line.

Hospitals need community support, now more than ever. Fundraising is a vital lifeline that provides the money needed for essential medical equipment, tools and devices, as well as to build brand new, state-of-the-art facilities. Community generosity towards WLMH has always been boundless, and it has never been more visible than at this moment in time.

Thank you to everyone who continues to give and make a difference in patients’ lives. Wishing you and your loved ones a safe, happy and healthy holiday season, with many more milestones to come in 2023.

Rob MacIsaac
President and CEO, Hamilton Health Sciences

Leslie Gillies
VP, Community Medicine & Population Health, Interprofessional Practice/Development & Clinical Education, & WLMH Exec. Site Lead, Hamilton Health Sciences

Midwives returning to roots, building the future

The Lincoln Community Midwives are coming home to West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH).

As announced last week, the midwifery team will be returning to practice at the site on October 3, when the birthing service officially resumes in a 24/7 care model.

“We are all really excited to be coming back to WLMH. It feels like we are returning to our roots while being able to build the future of the program at the same time,” says Pilar Chapman, midwifery site lead for WLMH.

The WLMH obstetrics program has been temporarily redirected to Niagara Health a few times since 2019 as a result of necessary safety upgrades needed at the site, staffing shortages and response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The current redirect has been in place since December 2021, when the fast-moving Omicron variant spread across the site closing all but a few beds to new patient admissions.

Caring for the community

For a time during the program’s redirect, the midwives worked between both WLMH and Niagara Health providing care for patients. However, as the temporary pause lingered, the team made the difficult decision to stay at Niagara until the program could return 24/7.

“We tried working between the two hospital sites for a while, but it was not working well. There are logistical challenges when working between two different hospitals [sites and systems] each with their own processes. There are also concerns around moving patients in labour or with the possibility of being in labour when the changeover between hospitals happened. Most importantly, patients were stressed about the situation and we just decided to stay at Niagara Health until we could come back 100-per-cent of the time,” said Chapman.

The midwifery service has a long history at WLMH, dating back more than 25 years. WLMH was one of the first hospitals in the region to open its doors to midwives. At the time, the hospital had just one obstetrician practicing and the midwives brought additional support and growth to the program. Midwifery practice makes up an integral part of the interdisciplinary team at low-risk-birthing units working closely with obstetricians, family physicians and nursing colleagues.

“WLMH has traditionally offered a low-risk birthing focus. Midwifery care is a great complimentary service as it primarily deals with normal, low-risk births. We’ve had a great relationship with providers at the hospital for a long time,” said Chapman, noting that prior to the recent service changes, midwives delivered 15-20 per cent of all babies at WLMH.

New hospital, new opportunities

Chapman was quick to express gratitude toward Niagara Health and the team at its St. Catharines’ General site for welcoming them into the fold.

“Our team is very thankful for Niagara [Health] opening their doors to our practice during this period. They were very welcoming and our team has a great relationship with their labour and delivery unit.”

Being at the St. Catharines’ site also helped the seven-person Lincoln midwifery team appreciate the benefit of working in a newer hospital, increasing excitement about the soon-to-be rebuilt WLMH and the opportunities it will hold.

“We look forward to continuing to build a program focused on low-risk, normal births. As a teaching hospital, it holds the opportunity for incorporating further research and evidence into our practice. But we will also be able to teach other obstetrical care providers about this important care model, which can help low-risk birthing units thrive in smaller communities,” said Chapman, who also offered that there are very few Level 1B birthing units – WLMH’s designation – remaining in Ontario.

The midwives aren’t the only ones who are eager for the service to return. Many across the hospital community are counting down the days until the midwives resume practice at WLMH.

“We all are looking forward to a new beginning for our WLMH site,” said Dr. Joan Bellaire, WLMH site medical lead. “It is so momentous for us to welcome our midwives back to the WLMH family and to benefit from their knowledge and skill while working together with our obstetricians, family physicians and our nurses to guide our department towards a centre of excellence for low-risk obstetrics. Their decision to come back was critical in the program being able to return at this juncture.”

Photos: Tearing down, building up

If you’ve been by the West Lincoln Memorial Hospital site lately, you will probably notice that it doesn’t look quite the same anymore. Work continues to roll along at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital to prepare for construction on the new hospital. If you haven’t been by recently, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Workers are renovating the emergency department (ED) platform. The awning has been removed and a giant retaining wall is being built to increase the space outside of the ED.
View from the ED. The purpose of this work is to allow enough space for ambulances to turn around and then return to the street down the ED driveway, as opposed to exiting out the east parking lot exit.
Speaking of the east parking lot exit, a construction access pathway has been created. The access on the west side of the building will also be used as an access point.
Construction trailers – three to be exact – have moved onto the front lawn. These will provide space to the construction teams to conduct meetings without taking over space inside the hospital.
Roughly 35 trees across the site were taken down in preparation for new hospital construction. Efforts are being made to protect all trees which are at high risk of exposure to construction activity. More than 120 trees will be planted throughout the redevelopment project.
A walkway connecting WLMH with Deer Park Villa is being taken down. The walkway is directly in the path of construction. It’s location is very close to where the new hospital’s front entrance will be.
Soon, the area in the forefront will be excavated and formed for the hospital’s basement and footings.
With the loss of parking due to construction, off-site parking has been arranged for staff. So has a shuttle to the lot.
General rules of engagement for the project: safety always first!

Preparing the new hospital site for success

Early site works well underway at WLMH

With the ground officially “broken” on the new West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH), attention has quickly turned toward prepping the site for the build.

Early site works, which generally refers to activities required to prepare the site for construction, have been taking place since the end of April. This includes removing trees which were in the path of construction (35 were removed, with 122 new trees to be planted over the course of the project), locating and moving existing mechanical systems, and decommissioning some physical spaces connected to the existing hospital.

RELATED: New WLMH a done deal

“Depending on the site, there can be significant work needed to make it a safe, blank slate for excavation,” said Kelly Campbell, VP, Corporate Services and Capital Development at Hamilton Health Sciences. “The WLMH build site is pretty open, but it has a relatively small footprint so there is some demolition work that needs to be done ahead of construction. From the street, it may not look like much is happening at the moment, but there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes and on site.”

Notably, there is a service corridor connecting the existing hospital and Deer Park Villa located at the north end of the property. This enclosed walkway, which includes the WLMH kitchen used by hospital Nutrition Services, will be need to be removed ahead of construction. A new home for Nutrition Services – the team and area responsible for feeding inpatients – has been created inside the hospital and the walkway will soon be hoarded off and taken down.

Another early works change happening at the site will involve an alternate plan for some site parking. Parts of the existing lot will be converted to construction access, and hoarding is planned to be erected during the coming month. To offset parking demand at the site, HHS has struck a partnership with a nearby church for staff and physician parking through the week. Parking spaces at the site will be reserved for patients and families, and a small number for emergency on-call physicians.

“We knew from the beginning that access to the build site and parking would be something we need to address. With the support of our church partner, we’ve created a suitable off-site parking arrangement for our staff and physicians during the construction period,” said Campbell, noting that once the new hospital is built and the existing hospital is removed, on-site parking at WLMH will grow considerably.

Probably the biggest change in the coming weeks will be the addition of construction office trailers at the front of the hospital. While not an early site work per se, nothing screams progress like a build team setting up a field office on-site. Once positioned, the trailers will be surrounded by hoarding and wrapped with project signage, creating a safe space on-site for project meetings to take place outside of the existing hospital building.

So, when will ground actually be broken on the new hospital?

“Early works will continue over the summer and into the beginning of fall, at which time excavation and construction can start. This will continue through to fall 2024, when we can start moving furniture and fixtures in and commissioning the building. Substantial Completion is targeted for early 2025 and patients will be able to receive care in the new hospital shortly after that,” said Campbell.

New West Lincoln Memorial Hospital is a done deal!

Now its time to build!

Shovels are about to hit the ground on the new West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH)!

The Government of Ontario approved the start of construction to begin on the new Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) site following the closing of the project contract between EllisDon Infrastructure Healthcare (EDIH) and HHS on April 29, 2022.

Related: read the full news release

The next day, local elected, hospital and community leaders gathered to celebrate.

Here are a few pics from the day.

EllisDon Team Selected to Build New WLMH

HAMILTON, ON – EllisDon Infrastructure Healthcare (EDIH) has been selected as the preferred proponent to design, build and finance the West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH) redevelopment project.

Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) selected EDIH after extensive evaluations following an open, fair and competitive request for proposals process that began in June 2021.

“EllisDon is a market leader in the delivery of important health-care infrastructure projects across Ontario, with a long history of innovation and collaboration working with public partners,” said Kelly Campbell, HHS’ VP of Corporate Services and Capital Development. “We are excited for their vision to bring this project to life. As we move forward with our preferred design-build partner, we acknowledge and are grateful for the time and energy that all teams put into their proposals to build the future WLMH.”

The EDIH team includes:

  • Applicant Leads: EllisDon Corporation
  • Design Team: Parkin Architects Limited
  • Construction Team: EllisDon Corporation
  • Financial Advisor: EllisDon Capital Inc.

IO and HHS will now work to finalize contract details with EDIH.

“EllisDon has a proven record in delivering quality capital projects across Ontario,” said Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West. “The people of Niagara West who have worked so hard to see construction begin on the new hospital can be confident in the high degree of professionalism that they will bring to this project, as we all eagerly look forward to shovels in the ground, and the doors opening on this vital project.”

The project is expected to reach financial close in the coming weeks, which will mean that relevant contracts have been signed and a financing rate has been set.

“We are thrilled with this great news,” said Andrew Smith, Campaign Chair for Take it to the Finish…Building a Healthy Community. “We wish to thank all those who have participated in bringing us closer to the reality of a new hospital; our donors who have been continuously generous, the leadership of our Foundation board and its staff, Campaign members, HHS, Save & Rebuild team, local municipalities and Region. We have always believed in our community and have full confidence that together we could and can accomplish the local share goal of $50 million. We are so very close to ‘Taking it to the Finish…Building a Healthy Community’ let’s take it across the finish line!”

The contract cost will be announced publicly following financial close and construction is scheduled to begin shortly thereafter.

A message to the WLMH community

Last year, we started this message off by noting how remarkable a year 2020 was.

It’s safe to say that 2021 has followed a similar path.

Over the past 12 months, our teams across Hamilton Health Sciences, including those at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH), have continued to demonstrate resilience, dedication, and courage serving patients with unwavering compassion in the most challenging of times. Staff and physicians continue to rise to each occasion and meet every difficult endeavour head on.

At WLMH, we saw many staff bring their highly specialized skills to other hospital sites, helping out in the hardest hit patient care areas, and others volunteering their skills at vaccination sites. Some programs at the site saw twists and turns as the hospital followed the government’s direction in response to the unrelenting virus, changing the way our providers deliver and patients receive care.

All of that turbulence did not stop progress on major WLMH initiatives.

For the first time in the site’s almost 75-year history, patients can now get timely and critical computed tomography (CT) scans in West Niagara. This momentous achievement was the result of many years of work by many hands – in the hospital, the Foundation, the community and at Queen’s Park. The site is now also home to two new x-ray machines and a new mammography suite, allowing more opportunity for preventative screening close to home.

As we head into 2022, we are just months – yes, months – away from construction being able to start on the new hospital. Getting here has taken immense effort, energy and emotional investment. It has been a long road travelled, but when shovels finally break ground on this long-overdue project, we think we will all agree that it was time well spent.

On behalf of Hamilton Health Sciences, we would like to wish our staff, physicians, volunteers, families, donors, community and supporters a very happy, healthy and safe holiday season, and what promises to be a very exciting New Year.

Rob MacIsaac, President and CEO, Hamilton Health Sciences

Leslie Gillies, VP, Community Medicine & Population Health, & Exec Site Lead, WLMH – Hamilton Health Sciences

This message was originally drafted for the West Lincoln Memorial Hospital Foundation annual Trees of Healthy Wishes campaign.

Teams submit technical RFPs for new WLMH

Financial submissions due January 2022

The West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH) Redevelopment project moved a little closer to becoming a reality as the technical Request for Proposals (RFP) period closed.

Technical submissions include individual plans for the design, layout and execution of the future facility. Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) and Infrastructure Ontario (IO) will now begin a rigorous evaluation of the technical submissions.

The financial component of the RFP is expected to close in January 2022, after which time HHS and IO will be able to select a preferred proponent and negotiate a contract with that team.

“As we turn the corner into the New Year, we will very soon be able to determine and share who will build the new West Lincoln Memorial Hospital and what it will look like,” said Kelly Campbell, Vice-President, Corporate Services & Capital Development at HHS. “We thank each of the teams for the time, effort and energy they have invested into developing their technical proposals for this project. Very soon, we will have the exciting yet challenging task of selecting one winner from the high-quality and unique submissions.”

It is anticipated the successful team will be announced in spring 2022, and construction will begin shortly thereafter.


The RFP was posted at the end of June 2021. The three shortlisted teams – which were determined through an open Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process earlier this year – were invited to respond to the RFP for the new hospital. The RFP package included more than 5,500 technical requirements set by HHS, in partnership with the Ministry of Health and IO, which each team must satisfy in its submission.

“This is an exciting next step towards the build of the new West Niagara hospital the community has been working towards for many years,” said Sam Oosterhoff, Niagara West MPP. “This legacy community healthcare infrastructure will provide care and treatment to many patients in our community for years to come, and I wish to thank all those who have worked so hard to get the new build to this point. The Government of Ontario is committed to working with Hamilton Health Sciences and the whole community in getting the new hospital built as soon as possible.”

Q&A: Leadership lessons learned

For the last four-plus years, Cindy MacDonald has been the Director of Community Programs and Site Administrator at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital. She recently announced her retirement which is set for the end of December 2021. She graciously (and humbly) agreed to sit down for a Rapid Fire Q&A session to share some of insights from her career and advice for younger health-care workers looking to take the leap into management.

(Dear Reader, please note that the feature photo shared with this story was taken long before the COVID-19 pandemic. Cindy, like all members of our team, diligently follow public health guidelines, including masking and physical distancing.)

Q. Best piece of advice you’ve been given about leadership?

A. My mentor told me a long time ago: “surround yourself with bright lights,” meaning other people who are committed to excellence and kindness. Bright lights bring people together and help others grow and evolve.

Q. What would you say to someone who wants to get into health-care management?

A. First thing I would ask is “why”? What do you want to achieve in your career? What’s your definition of leadership? If you’re coming into a leadership role for any other anything other than wanting to provide leadership to those around you and support patients and the organization, you may not be successful. Leadership is not about you as an individual but how you can support others to be successful. It can be a very challenging at times and you have to be in it for the right reasons. If your heart is at the bedside, you can be a leader in compassionate and evidence based care, teamwork, advocacy – there is a need for bedside leadership as well.

Q. Most important skills health-care leaders should have to be successful?

A. Communication is very important. The challenge of communicating in a digital world is that email isn’t always the best way to get a message across. How do you ensure people are informed and have what they need to do their job? How to you bring information to people as opposed to thinking they’ll seek it out on their own?

Q. Best piece of advice about being staying grounded in a management role?

A. Part of being a good leader is reflecting and learning, but you’ll never achieve everything you want to do in a role. It’s about doing the best job you can do and making positive change for those around you.

Q. Any leadership myths you’d like to dispel?

A. People sometimes think when you take on leadership positions that you need to change, but you don’t. What you do need to be is authentic and stay true to yourself.

Q. Best part about your time at WLMH?

A. The team who come in every day and provide the best care possible for patients. I’m thankful for the opportunity to work in a community hospital for the first time in my career. I’m honoured to be of service to the community, and grateful for being part of the exciting conversations about the new hospital.

Q. Plans for retirement?

A. Lots. But after 36 years of working full time in health care, I’m looking forward to what life wants to show me next.

Obstetrics services resuming October 5

Obstetrics services at WLMH will resume starting October 5, supporting deliveries from Tuesday morning to Friday afternoon.

Outside of these hours of operation, women in labour or requiring assessment will be redirected to deliver at the St. Catharines site of Niagara Health (NH).

This is the same model that was in place prior to the provincial directive earlier this year which temporarily paused scheduled care to allow hospital staff and physicians to support clinical areas hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our obstetricians and family physicians will retain their privileges at both hospitals, allowing continuity of care for patients. In situations where WLMH physicians are not able to attend a delivery, the patient will be under the care of the NH obstetrician on call


Midwifery care will be provided at NH only.

EXPECTING FAMILIES: this handout is for you.


Once again, the obstetrics service resumption will be assessed on an ongoing basis to determine if and how it can be extended. The goal is to provide as many hours of obstetrics services as possible, as long as its sustainable from a staffing and resourcing perspective to do so.

Hamilton Health Sciences is grateful for our ongoing partnership with NH and its team who continue to make this service arrangement possible until obstetrics services can fully resume at WLMH. We also appreciate the flexibility and professionalism our staff and physicians have demonstrated during this period of transition.

“Exciting part of the development process”

Work continues on rebuild project

The Request for Proposals (RFP) was issued at the very end of June, meaning the three teams vying for the project have all of the requirements needed to complete their bids.

For the redevelopment team which has been working furiously throughout the planning phases to get this project over the finish line, it’s a chance to take stock of all their efforts.

“This is an exciting part of the development process,” said Bart DeVries, director of redevelopment at Hamilton Health Sciences. “Our team has spent the better part of two years consulting and planning for the new hospital. Now we’re at the stage where we get to see that hard work materialize in the plans being developed by the design-build teams competing to win the project.”

Working behind-the-scenes

While this is a relatively quiet period in terms of public milestones and updates, lots of work is happening behind the scenes.

“Together with Infrastructure Ontario, we meet with each bid team on almost a weekly basis. Some of these meetings are a few hours in duration to cover their progress on schedules, IT and equipment planning, etc. In August, September, and October there are all-day meetings with each team where they share their current design iterations and walk us through their plans at each stage,” said DeVries, noting that each meeting is attended by an impartial “fairness monitor” to ensure that any information provided by the hospital to one bidder is shared equally with the others.

These meetings are an important part of the development process. They allow each design-build team to receive feedback on its designs in real time and have dialogue with the hospital. The meetings also provide the opportunity to raise red flags if there are potential issues or concerns on either side of the table.

“The RFP includes over 5,500 specific and unique requirements associated with the project. Documentation is provided to the bid teams after each design presentation session outlining which requirements have been satisfactorily met, and those that have not. As you can imagine, many questions come up throughout the process. Between regular meetings with the bidders, and request for information (RFI) requests, all parties have the ability to interact with our requirements and ultimately identify solutions, even though their design is unique from others. Where warranted, we revise some of our requirements to respond to innovations and other changes that will benefit the project,” said DeVries.

“With all projects, especially those which move as fast as the WLMH rebuild is moving, it’s always better to address matters up front so that teams can progress their designs quickly and allow us to minimize what needs to be resolved in the end,” he added.

Building relationships

The regular dialogue also lets the hospital’s team get to know each of the potential design-build teams. The new hospital will take between two and three years to build. It’s important to start building relationships and understanding each team’s dynamics.

“The relationship between the design-build team and the hospital and its planning, design and conformance (PDC) team is critical for the success of any project. Building rapport starts on day one and it’s nice for both sides to get to know each other early on,” noted DeVries.

Meetings with design-build teams will continue until late October 2021. Technical (“design”) submissions for the RFP are due at the end of November 2021. RFP financial (“cost”) submissions are due early January 2022. Evaluation of each will take place and the successful proponent will be announced sometime in March 2022. Shovels are expected to hit the ground by June 2022.

HHS, IO Issue RFP for WLMH Redevelopment

Today, Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and Hamilton Health Sciences have invited three teams to respond to a request for proposals (RFP) to design, build and finance the West Lincoln Memorial Hospital redevelopment project.

The three teams were prequalified based on criteria identified in a request for qualifications process that began in November 2020. Selection criteria included design and construction capability, experience, qualified personnel and financial capacity to undertake a project of this size and scope.

“With the posting of the RFP, the three teams who were previously shortlisted now have everything they need to develop their bids,” said Kelly Campbell, HHS vice-president of corporate services and capital development. “We are excited by the caliber of the teams and are confident each submission will bring a unique vision for the rebuilt hospital. Together with our partners at Infrastructure Ontario, we look forward to working with each team over the coming months, and ultimately choosing the group who will deliver the hospital for the community.”

The prequalified teams and their prime team members are:

AMICO SACYR ALLIANCE
• Applicant Lead: Amico Design Build Inc. (50%), Sacyr Construction S.A (50%)
• Design Team: IBI Group Architects Canada
• Construction Team: Amico Design Build Inc. (50%), Sacyr Construction S.A (50%)
• Financial Advisor: Operis Business Engineering Limited


ELLISDON INFRASTRUCTURE HEALTHCARE
• Applicant Leads: EllisDon Corporation
• Design Team: Parkin Architects Limited
• Construction Team: EllisDon Corporation
• Financial Advisor: EllisDon Capital Inc.


POMERLEAU HEALTHCARE PARTNERS
• Applicant Lead: Pomerleau Inc.
• Design Team: Cumulus Architects Inc, WalterFedy
• Construction Team: Pomerleau Inc.
• Financial Advisor: Pomerleau Inc.

“The release of the RFP for WLMH is a key milestone towards the new build,” said Sam Oosterhoff, MPP, Niagara West. “This is great news for West Niagara, and the speed with which we have arrived at this point from the initial commitment to a new build being made in October 2018, testifies to the huge desire to see this new build in the community. I have appreciated working with HHS, Minister Elliott, and the community on this key community infrastructure project, and it is exciting to see us get to this place. West Niagara has been waiting for a long time to see our new hospital, and today’s release of the RFP is very good news.”


Teams will now begin preparing proposals that detail how they will deliver the project. Once technical submissions are received by the end of November 2021, Infrastructure Ontario and Hamilton Health Sciences will evaluate the proposals, select a preferred team and then negotiate a final contract. A successful bidder is expected to be announced in spring 2022.

Q&A: Update on the new WLMH

Q. The Stage 3 submission was sent to the Ministry of Health in late March for approval. Where does that currently stand?

A. Our team has been engaged in discussion with the Ministry about the submission. This is normal. Everyone is working toward the same goal of planning and building a great hospital. All parties are working as fast as possible to achieve that goal.

Q. When do we anticipate Stage 3 approval?

A. Approval is expected imminently.

Q. What happens after the Stage 3 submission is approved?

A. Refining the RFP documents has continued since the Stage 3 plan was submitted. The Stage 4A (Approval to Request for Proposal) was submitted to the Ministry on May 28. Final revisions and reviews will continue into mid-June, and we are also preparing for the tendering period.

Q. When will the RFP for the design-build team be posted?

A. Ministry direction is to post the RFP on June 28, which is almost a week earlier than originally scheduled.

GRAPHIC: Countdown to Construction

Q. What happens in Stage 4?

A. The three design-build team candidates will receive the tender documents on June 28. This launches us into formal design presentations from each team as they develop their proposals. Those presentations are followed up with design documents which will be checked for compliance and feedback, and then returned to the teams to progressively elaborate on their designs. This will continue until the proposals are received late fall 2021 at which point there is an extensive evaluation and negotiation process with the preferred proponent, leading to a contract to design-build-finance the project.

Q. What happens during the RFP period? Is there any contact between the hospital and the bidding teams?

A. There are regular touchpoints between the hospital, Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and the three individual teams while the RFP is posted. These conversations will inform the teams’ bids. The procurement process will be overseen by a third-party to ensure transparency and confidentiality are maintained.

Reflecting on a remarkable year

What a remarkable year 2020 has been.

As a global pandemic took hold in the community, our team at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital (WLMH) has shown incredible resilience and dedication to keep the hospital open and our patients safe.

Inside the hospital, we’ve invested heavily to upgrade the aging mechanical systems to make the building safer, until we can open the new one. The most significant safety upgrade at the site occurred in the operating rooms and endoscopy reprocessing area. Our site team and the contractor worked tirelessly during the surgical shutdown that occurred in response to the pandemic in order to renovate and reopen the operating rooms on time.

We’re also further down the path than ever before to rebuild WLMH. This year started with the government approving a detailed service plan for the new hospital, which meant we could start designing how those services will function in a brand new building. At the end of October, that plan was sent to the Ministry of Health for review. We’re now looking for a team to design and build the future hospital. This project is moving at unprecedented speed. Our goal is to keep it going.

Through it all, our community, neighbours, families, patients, staff, physicians, volunteers, partners and donors have stood beside us. We thank you for your unwavering support and generosity this and every year. Because of you, WLMH’s future has never been brighter.

On behalf of Hamilton Health Sciences, we would like to wish you a very happy, healthy and safe holiday season.

Ten things to know about the Stage 2 submission

The last seven months were a whirlwind for those involved in WLMH rebuild planning. But, we got the Stage 2 plan done and sent off to the Ministry for review and approval…ahead of schedule!

It’s not a final document until the Ministry approves it, so we can’t say too much at this point. Though we’re too excited not to share some information about the plan. Here are 10 things to know about the WLMH Stage 2 submission:

  • The Stage 2 plan is submitted as part of the Government of Ontario’s five-stage process for building a hospital, with Infrastructure Ontario estimating construction on the new WLMH to begin in 2022.
  • The Stage 2 plan is based on planning details set by the Ministry about the services to be included in the new hospital. The Ministry of Health will make the final decision to approve or request changes to the plan.
  • The submission is not publicly accessible until the Ministry’s final approval is provided. This is anticipated early in 2021.
  • The submission includes:
    • a detailed list of the spaces within the new building;
    • a simplified “block planning” of how those spaces may be configured within the new hospital;
    • a site plan showing elements like parking, site access, landscape, etc.;
    • a list of all furniture and equipment needed for the facility;
    • and, a preliminary cost estimate.
  • Based on Ministry specs to assure accessibility, infection control and service delivery, the proposed hospital will be almost double the size of the current hospital – from 65,000 sq. ft. to roughly 120,000 sq. ft.
  • Approximately 150 staff members from across WLMH and HHS contributed their experience and expertise to this planning. This was on top of their daily duties of providing or supporting the delivery of excellent patient care. We’re incredibly thankful for their efforts to get this done. Particularly because…
  • Stage 2 planning kicked off the week before COVID-19 started showing up in our community. Almost every meeting was done virtually, but the stakeholder engagement was equally as robust as in-person sessions. “We got great questions, ideas and comments in all of our user group meetings. The engagement got even better as we progressed through the process. This was new for all of us, but it was a robust experience and that’s definitely reflected in the final plan,” said Bart DeVries, director of redevelopment.
  • The plan proposes to build the new hospital behind the existing building. Once the new hospital is open, the old hospital will be demolished. This will create a substantial set back from the street to the front door allowing for landscaping and additional parking. The details of what this looks like will be developed in Stage 3.
  • The plan includes four operating suites which is twice the number at the current WLMH. This is consistent with the Ministry’s direction, meaning more people can receive the surgical care they need at WLMH.
  • The plan includes space for a multi-faith room, where patients and families will be able to go for a quiet moment of reflection when they need it. The current site does not have a similar space.

    Want more content on the WLMH rebuild? Here’s the most recent video in our series with WLMH leaders involved in the rebuild, talking about what we’re planning and what we can expect moving forward.