Latest news with #HDGH
CBC
07-08-2025
- Health
- CBC
Hospital boosts number of social workers responding to 911 calls with Essex County OPP
Social Sharing People experiencing mental health crises in areas of Essex County served by the OPP are now more likely to see a social worker — not just a police officer — when they call 911. Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH) says it has increased the number of social workers who can respond to 911 calls with police from one to three. The specialty hospital, which focuses on mental health care, previously had two social workers assigned to its Mental Health Response Units, said Kevin Matte, the director of outpatient mental health services at HDGH. Those units paired social workers with OPP officers, but they didn't respond to live calls, he said. Instead, they mostly handled referrals. Now all three of those officer-social worker pairings will be part of the new Essex County Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Team, which responds to 911 calls. "Policing departments are seeing more 911 calls for mental health issues," Matte said. "So it's important for us to be able to kind of react to that and be able to support that increased call volume and allow us to have more availability of crisis workers on the road." The hospital has implemented a similar change to its partnership with the Windsor Police Service and almost doubled its volume, he said. But comparing Windsor to communities served by the OPP, such as Kingsville and Tecumseh, "isn't apples to apples." The change isn't just about increasing the volume of patients social workers see, he said. "It's targeted more to be person-centred because … if there's a call in Kingsville and a call in Tecumseh at the same time, it allows clinicians to attend both locations simultaneously, and it brings …. the care to people when they need it." HDGH has been partnering with the OPP for more than five years now, Matte said, and they've learned that it's important to be flexible to make services as accessible as possible.
CTV News
05-06-2025
- Health
- CTV News
New Tecumseh health campus honours Bob Probert's legacy
Bob Probert's family seen at the grand opening of HDGH's Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus in Tecumseh, Ont. on June 5, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) A ribbon-cutting ceremony on what would have been Bob Probert's 60th birthday marked the official opening of a new east-end health campus named in his honour on Thursday. The Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH) Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus is now fully operational, offering a range of specialized outpatient services for residents in Tecumseh, Lakeshore, and the surrounding area. The facility is named after the late NHL enforcer and Windsor native, whose legacy of supporting cardiac wellness lives on thanks to the funds raised during the annual Bob Probert Ride — an event that raised more than $1.2 million during its 10-year existence for local healthcare programs. Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus HDGH The ribbon cutting of HDGH's Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus in Tecumseh, Ont. on June 5, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) 'A lot more emotional than anticipated,' said Probert's widow, Dani, of the opening. 'Typically, on Bob's birthday we like to celebrate quietly, privately, the kids and I listening to his favourite music and eating all of his favourite foods. Today, it seemed so appropriate to be with the community at an event like this.' The new campus began seeing patients in late March and has already logged more than 700 visits across a variety of programs, including cardiac rehabilitation, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech-language therapy, and the Geriatric Assessment Program. Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus HDGH The ribbon cutting of HDGH's Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus in Tecumseh, Ont. on June 5, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) 'We knew there was a need on the east end,' said Probert. 'Especially for the elderly — just for the ease of access, the parking. When I toured the facility back in February during the soft open, it was full. It was just a wonderful, heartwarming feeling.' Healthcare leaders said the goal is to reduce barriers to care, particularly for patients who may struggle to travel to HDGH's main location in west Windsor. 'This was needed,' said HDGH President and CEO Bill Marra. 'People were not coming for care because transportation and access was a barrier.' Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus HDGH HDGH's CEO, Bill Marra, seen at the ribbon cutting of the Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus in Tecumseh, Ont. on June 5, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) Marra praised the Town of Tecumseh, the Probert family, and key donors including Unifor Local 444, Brotto Family Holdings and Suburban Homes, and the 'Probie Peeps' — a group of long-time community supporters — for bringing the project to life. 'This is all grassroots, community-based, and over a decade in the making,' said Marra. 'If it weren't for the town, the Probert family, and the donors you saw today, this literally would not have happened.' Shannon Landry, HDGH's Vice President of Clinical Services and Chief Nursing Executive, said the Tecumseh location is already proving its value. 'We've had about 700 visits already,' Landry said. 'There's occupational therapy, physical therapy, cardiac exercise, dietitians, all kinds of services from a rehabilitation perspective for patients. Our hopes and dreams have been fulfilled.' For the Probert family, the campus is the physical legacy of the ride that started it all. Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus HDGH Bob Probert's family seen at the grand opening of HDGH's Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus in Tecumseh, Ont. on June 5, 2025. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) 'The ride and this legacy project were created to honour our father and give back to the community he called home,' said Bob's eldest daughter, Brogan. 'Today, as we open the doors to this campus, we see that vision fulfilled. Our hearts are full.' Dani Probert said Bob would be 'humbled' by the outpouring of community support. 'Windsor-Essex has been so amazing in helping us through the grieving process over the past 10 years,' she said. 'It's been emotional. I didn't expect it to be this emotional.' The HDGH Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus is located at 12420 Lanoue Street.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
24/7 downtown Windsor crisis centre saw 150 first responder, ER referrals in May
A downtown Windsor, Ont., centre for urgent addictions and mental health crises says it's seen a big jump in referrals since expanding its services this spring. Aside from accepting walk-ins, it now takes drop offs from EMS and local police, and creates an alternative to the emergency department for officers and paramedics to bring people in crisis. The unit now accepts intakes 24/7. The centre is located at 1030 Ouellette Ave. and is adjacent to the Goyeau Street entrance of Windsor Regional Hospital's emergency room. It also now has four stabilization care beds where someone can stay for 48 hours, with an entrance that's monitored by security, including a metal detector. The Mental Health and Addictions Urgent Crisis Centre (MHAUCC) provides service to people 16 years of age or older and is run by Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH) and the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA). Tammy Kotyk, vice-president of mental health and addictions services at HDGH, says since the hours were extended they've seen some "really good results," including in May. The unit's staffing includes social support workers, nurses and a psychiatrist — with connections to wraparound services. Kotyk said before the round-the-clock hours they were averaging two first responder drop-offs per month. This May that's grown to approximately 50 drop-offs and roughly 100 referrals from hospital emergency departments. "Now that we're able to keep individuals, hold on to them for a longer period of time, it's really opened up that opportunity to send people [to the crisis centre]," said Kotyk. She says even though more attention is given to local opioid addiction cases — of which they see many — alcohol dependency continues to be the largest substance abuse problem in the community. Others are coming to their front door experiencing psychosocial situational crises, added Kotyk. "They're looking for housing … some of them are dealing with depression, anxiety and things like that," she said. "We're seeing everything across the spectrum from your mild to your more moderate to severe presentations." The centre treats voluntary patients, however, one caveat includes involuntary clients deemed incapable by a physician who require a Form 47 — that's an Ontario Ministry of Health provision that allows for mandated supervised treatment. According to Kotyk, the extended service and additional people using the centre have been spread out throughout the day so far. "It's not clustered. We're not seeing more people showing up at night because now we're open at night." She says prior to the expansion, they were seeing around 140 people a month and that's jumped closer to 230 now. "I think it's just getting people aware that you don't have to go wait in an emergency department if you have a mental health crisis or you're looking for support for your addiction needs, that there's an alternative place to go." The unit is currently funded through HDGH's existing budget, but they have put in a request to the province for future funding. The Windsor Police Service says it's "encouraged" by the expanded services. The force highlighted 12 admissions to the centre from their officers in May. "All of these programs help our officers get back on the road more quickly to respond to urgent calls, while still ensuring that people in crisis receive the care and support they need," the police service said in a statement. "We are grateful for our partnerships with health and human services providers across the community, and look forward to seeing continued positive results." In a statement, Essex-Windsor EMS said its paramedics had brought 29 patients to the unit since the hours increased. "That is more than we could have delivered there without the extended hours. Those are also 29 patients who got the right care at the right place at the right time," Chief Justin Lammers said in a statement. "We continue to work with Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare and Windsor Regional Hospital to find innovative ways to reduce pressures on emergency departments and reduce ambulance offload delays." Ahead of the expansion, Windsor police Chief Jason Bellaire said he felt it would make a big impact. "Being able to bring somebody who has agreed, in a moment of clarity to say, 'I would like to enter withdrawal management' or 'I'd like some certain services,' to have the ability to transport that person to this centre here," Bellaire said, "and they immediately start to receive care."
CTV News
30-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare expands Mental Health and Addictions Urgent Crisis Centre hours
Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH) has expanded its hours for the Mental Health and Addictions Urgent Crisis Centre. It said this is in an effort to support Windsor-Essex who are experiencing mental health or addictions crisis and giving another option instead of emergency departments. The centre will now give in-person crisis assessment services Monday through Friday, 24 hours a day. HDGH said it also has 24/7 voluntary drop-offs for EMS and policing partners, while continuing to focus on making a specialized system. 'HDGH reinforces its role in our community as a crucial resource for those experiencing a mental health or addictions crisis who cannot safely wait for community mental health and addiction support.
CBC
20-03-2025
- Health
- CBC
Timeline unclear, details still slim on new homelessness addiction treatment hub in Windsor
Social Sharing One of the lead organizations on Windsor's new Homelessness Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) hub services says "there hasn't been much movement" on the project, but the province says it will be operational in less than two weeks. At the end of January, Ontario Minister of Health Sylvia Jones announced that Windsor would get a HART hub — a bundle of services including new treatment beds, transitional housing and stabilization beds to give people a place to stay as they move into the next phase of their recovery. In an interview, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH), a lead agency on the project, told CBC News at the time that an agreement hadn't been finalized and it didn't have many details. But, HDGH CEO Bill Marra had said they intended to finish planning the project before March 31, in time to begin a phased roll-out on April 1. And when asked for an update this week, a spokesperson for HDGH told CBC News that "with the timing of the announcement and the election, there hasn't been much movement." "We continue to await further details from the government and to date, we have received funding confirmation letter. With that said, planning and discussions have been ongoing with partners," reads an emailed statement. They added that they're not able to make the details of the letter public at this time. Yet the province seems to have a different understanding. In an email Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Health said, "all sites will be operational as of April 1." They continued to say that "The Ministry is continuing to work with all 27 HART Hubs on their multi-year operational budgets." The province hasn't yet responded to a question about what services Windsor-Essex can expect to have available by the beginning of April. At least one HART hub in the province, in Guelph, has confirmed that it won't be open in time because of funding delays. What will Windsor's hub services include? On the provincial government's website, it says that the proposed services for Windsor's HART hub include: Primary care. Mental health and addictions services including assessment, care coordination withdrawal management. Peer support. Mental health and addictions supportive housing. Services to meet basic needs. The website notes that the "primary objective" of the local HART hub is to "divert repeated/inappropriate emergency department visits by providing individuals with more immediate access to help and efficiently using local community resources." Based on previous conversations with HDGH's Marra, these services will be spread across existing organizations. HDGH did not confirm with CBC how much funding it has been approved for, though it previously said it asked to receive $18 million dollars over three years. The provincial government had initially announced the HART hub concept in August 2024, after it decided that it would be closing multiple drug consumption and treatment sites.
