Ontario is embarking on a major initiative to elevate long-term care standards and is launching construction at Southampton Care Centre. This forms a segment of the provincial government's robust $6.4 billion commitment to establish over 30,000 fresh beds by 2028 and upgrade 28,000 existing ones across the province. 

The new 160-bed home will be built on the existing site of Southampton Care Centre and will feature:

 - 49 new and 111 upgraded beds in private and standard rooms

 - Larger resident common areas

 - Air conditioning throughout the home

 - Five ‘resident home areas’, each of which creates a more intimate and familiar living space

 - Dining and activity areas

 - Lounges

 - Bedrooms for up to 32 residents in each home area

Ontario Newsroom states that the distinctive design of the resident home areas aims to boost the residents' sense of belonging, emphasizing intimacy and comfort within the care environment.

“Congratulations to Southampton Care Centre on their ground-breaking for an upgraded, modernized home. Our government is fixing long-term care and a key part of that plan is building modern, safe and comfortable homes for our seniors. Today marks a significant milestone. When the building is completed, 160 residents in Bruce County will have a new place to call home, near their family and friends.”

Minister of Long-Term Care | Paul Calandra

Ontario's commitment to modernize long-term care transcends Southampton, extending to other areas like Kincardine, where they are building another long-term care home. Together, these two projects will provide Bruce County with 76 new and 212 upgraded long-term care beds, for a total of 288 beds built to modern design standards.

Four Pillars of the Long-Term Care Plan

Ontario's long-term care plan is built on four primary pillars:

 - Staffing and care

 - Quality and enforcement

 - Construction of safe, modern, and comfortable homes

 - Swift, convenient service access for seniors

These pillars guide the province's strategy towards modernizing the sector and enhancing service delivery.

According to Calandra, it is also important to have older homes get replaced for the sake of infection control and prevention. It allows the Province to build state-of-the-art homes that have infection prevention and control measures built right into the homes.

Fast-Tracking Construction of Long-Term Care Facilities

To expedite the construction of long-term care homes, Ontario has modernized its funding model and implemented innovative strategies. Among these is the sale of unused lands with the provision for long-term care facilities and leveraging hospital-owned lands in urban areas to construct urgently needed homes. A supplementary increase to the construction funding subsidy also aims to kick-start construction of more homes like Southampton Care Centre by August 31, 2023.

Addressing Demand and Enhancing Quality of Care

Currently, over 40,000 people are waiting to access a long-term care bed in Ontario. The proposed upgrades and new facilities will significantly shorten the median waiting time of 123 days. Furthermore, these enhanced facilities will facilitate healthcare workers' delivery of the government-regulated 4 hours of care per person per day.

The plan is to usher in residents to the renovated Southampton home by Spring 2026 at the latest. This initiative marks a critical milestone in Ontario's journey towards creating a sustainable, high-quality long-term care system for its seniors.