I learned something new on Friday. In the Province of Ontario, hospital infrastructure costs are treated just like infrastructure costs at the federal level and at the municipal level. That is to say, there is no long-term fund to cover the inevitable deterioration of infrastructure. When hospitals need infrastructure repairs or upgrades, they must make a special request to the Province for the money.
So there I was on Friday, at Hotel Dieu, listening to the government of Premier Doug Ford committing money to taking care of what we already have rather than just letting it fall apart. Helping hospitals make needed repairs rather than kicking the can down the road and letting younger taxpayers foot the bill.
Here is MPP for Chatham-Kent Rick Nicholls representing Premier Doug Ford at Friday's funding announcement.
So there I was on Friday, at Hotel Dieu, listening to the government of Premier Doug Ford committing money to taking care of what we already have rather than just letting it fall apart. Helping hospitals make needed repairs rather than kicking the can down the road and letting younger taxpayers foot the bill.
Here is MPP for Chatham-Kent Rick Nicholls representing Premier Doug Ford at Friday's funding announcement.
And here is what Rick Nicholls was announcing:
$666,152 to Erie Shores Healthcare in Leamington for updating equipment for sterylizing and upgrades to improve energy efficiency.
$930,000 to Hotel-Dieu Grace HealthCare for a new nurse call system to replace the old one.
$1,542,162 to Windsor Regional Hospital for upgrades to the generators, the chillers, and other infrastructure. ("Chiller" sounds like a dessert you get at the Dairy Freeze outside Cottam but it's actually part of a cooling system).
That's over $3.1 million through the Ministry of Infrastructure for Windsor and Essex County. I want to concentrate on the $666,152 to the hospital in Leamington, a.k.a. Erie Shores Healthcare.
Firstly, having been at Erie Shores Healthcare myself, I am pleased to see the province's continued commitment to this hospital. It's important to provide services in more than one location. Anyone who has ever waited in a crowded emergency room knows exactly what I mean.
Secondly, I note that energy efficiency upgrades are included. Why is this important? Because there is something called "time of day" billing for energy costs. Hospitals are open 24-hours per day. They cannot move their energy use to lower-cost, off-peak hours. They are always open during higher-cost, on-peak hours. So improving energy efficiency saves money for you and me, the taxpayers. I like that.
This is the kind of government spending that taxpayers can endorse. Take care of what we got. Keep it up to date. Don't let the bill fall on the shoulders of our children. And save money where you can.
$666,152 to Erie Shores Healthcare in Leamington for updating equipment for sterylizing and upgrades to improve energy efficiency.
$930,000 to Hotel-Dieu Grace HealthCare for a new nurse call system to replace the old one.
$1,542,162 to Windsor Regional Hospital for upgrades to the generators, the chillers, and other infrastructure. ("Chiller" sounds like a dessert you get at the Dairy Freeze outside Cottam but it's actually part of a cooling system).
That's over $3.1 million through the Ministry of Infrastructure for Windsor and Essex County. I want to concentrate on the $666,152 to the hospital in Leamington, a.k.a. Erie Shores Healthcare.
Firstly, having been at Erie Shores Healthcare myself, I am pleased to see the province's continued commitment to this hospital. It's important to provide services in more than one location. Anyone who has ever waited in a crowded emergency room knows exactly what I mean.
Secondly, I note that energy efficiency upgrades are included. Why is this important? Because there is something called "time of day" billing for energy costs. Hospitals are open 24-hours per day. They cannot move their energy use to lower-cost, off-peak hours. They are always open during higher-cost, on-peak hours. So improving energy efficiency saves money for you and me, the taxpayers. I like that.
This is the kind of government spending that taxpayers can endorse. Take care of what we got. Keep it up to date. Don't let the bill fall on the shoulders of our children. And save money where you can.