Dr. Lori Letts, president of the board of directors for the Hamilton Council on Aging, shares why rebuilding and modernizing sections of Juravinski Hospital will be good news for older adults in Hamilton and beyond.
Many patients receiving care in outdated, inefficient sections of Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS)’ Juravinski Hospital (JH) are older adults who have been hospitalized for medical conditions like diabetes, heart attacks, pneumonia, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. These outdated hospital wings are also where older rehabilitation patients receive inpatient care, as well as patients recovering from surgeries, including cancer-related operations.
“In order to age successfully, we need age-inclusive health care environments that support people and their well-being.”
“Outdated infrastructure means that people who are in the hospital, as well as their caregivers, are not given optimal care, says Dr. Lori Letts, president of the board of directors for the Hamilton Council on Aging. Letts is also a professor in McMaster University’s School of Rehabilitation Sciences and a member of the McMaster Institute for Research on Aging (MIRA).
“In order to age successfully, we need age-inclusive health care environments that support people and their well-being,” says Letts, who’s among the many community leaders throwing support behind our plan to rebuild and modernize old, outdated sections of JH.
HHS is committed to rebuilding the older sections of JH, which is a collection of buildings constructed over the last century and connected by a patchwork of hallways, walkways and tunnels.
The plan includes tearing down a large stretch of JH facing the escarpment – the M, L, H, E sections — and the F section which adjoins E, and replacing them with a state-of-the-art patient-care addition. The redevelopment of JH is the single-largest health infrastructure investment in our organization’s history and will also make JH the largest acute inpatient hospital in our region.
Hospital rooms in JH’s outdated wards are small, cramped, and mostly shared with up to four people to a room. On most units, there is only one shower for about 40 patients. Nursing stations are poorly located and inefficiently designed; there’s a shortage of storage space; elevators break down and some are even too small to fit stretchers. And none of these older sections have air conditioning.
Washrooms in the old section’s rooms are so small, patients using walkers need to back in. And since patient rooms are too small to accommodate wheelchairs, walkers and various pieces of medical equipment, these end up lining the already narrow halls.
The new sections, when built, will feature room for about 100 patients more than today, with 70 per cent more space for care. All patient rooms will be single occupancy, with private washrooms that include a shower and more room for walkers, wheelchairs, chairs for visitors and other equipment.
Hallways will be larger and elevators will easily accommodate a stretcher. The new section will also feature modern ventilation, heating and air-conditioning systems.
“We know that the population in the Hamilton area is increasingly going to be older adults,” says Letts. “If we think about investing in ways that older adults in Hamilton can age successfully, having accessible, age inclusive, senior-friendly health care environments are a key component in supporting people to age well.”
The redevelopment project also supports HHS as a top 10 Canadian research hospital. “A modernized hospital is more likely to attract professionals and researchers who are interested in geriatric health care,” says Letts. As a result, Hamilton patients are often the first to benefit from innovative new treatments aimed at prolonging life and curing diseases.
Add your name to a petition in support of a new Juravinski Hospital.
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