Hospice Vaughan gets $1.05 M annual commitment from province

YorkRegion.com
Aug. 9, 2016
By Tim Kelly

Palliative care got a shot in the arm as Hospice Vaughan received a $1.05-million annual commitment in operating funding from the province, Monday.

The announcement, made at the Woodbridge Avenue office of the hospice, is conditional on building the planned 10-bed hospice, which is part of a 24,000 square-foot centre of excellence complex expected to be completed by the end of 2018.

Health minister Eric Hoskins announced the funding and afterwards reiterated it would be permanent.

“This is operating funding, we provide a per-bed amount,” said Hoskins. “We’ve made a commitment for permanent, ongoing, operating funding,” he added.

Mary Grace Tatangelo, chair of the board of Hospice Vaughan, said the government commitment was “huge for our community. This helps start our capital campaign off.”

Hospice Vaughan has raised $1 million of the $10 million it needs to generate for the complex, which will be built on a 2.8-acre site on leased land at Islington Avenue and Rutherford Road. The complex will include, in addition to 10 beds, space for outreach programs, a day hospice, volunteer visiting, caregiver support, and grief and bereavement programs for children, teens and adults. It will also include a facility for research and education.