Ontario Expanding Access to Cardiac Care in Essex County
Essex County — The Ontario government is investing up to $31 million to support the renovation and expansion of Windsor Regional Hospital’s cardiac catheterization lab, connecting more people in Southwestern Ontario to life-saving cardiac care, closer to home.
Through this investment, over 17,000 square feet of space will be renovated into a new and modernized catheterization lab suite. The larger space and 24-hour service will allow Windsor Regional Hospital to complete more vital cardiac procedures. The renovation will include the addition of a second catheterization table to connect more people to the care they need sooner, reduce wait times for both urgent and elective procedures and ensure timely access to essential services in the region.
“Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is continuing to make record investments in health care to connect more Ontarians to convenient care options, close to home,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “This upgraded cardiac lab in Windsor will allow even more people across Southwestern Ontario to access state-of-the-art cardiac care in their community, when they need it most.”
Construction begins this summer and is expected to be completed in July 2026.
Windsor Regional Hospital is one of 20 Regional Cardiac Care Centres (RCCC) in Ontario that provides a range of advanced cardiac services to diagnose and treat both common and complex heart and blood vessel problems.
Through Your Health: A Plan For Connected and Convenient Care, Ontario is helping connect more Ontarians to convenient care, closer to home, for years to come.
Quick Facts
- A new hospital is being planned for Windsor-Essex to consolidate and expand acute care services. The site preparation is currently under way and construction is expected to begin in 2026.
- Ontario’s plan to build and expand hospitals will lead to investments of nearly $50 billion over the next 10 years in health infrastructure, including close to $36 billion in capital grants. This includes supporting more than 50 hospital projects that would add approximately 3,000 new beds over 10 years to improve access to reliable quality care, on top of the 3,500 the Ontario government has added since 2020.
- The province’s Learn and Stay grant and As of Right rules are adding more medical laboratory technologists to Ontario’s health care workforce to staff settings like new and expanded cardiac labs for years to come.
Quotes
“We have waited for many years for this project to come to fruition. We thank the Ford government for seeing the project through so that we can serve more cardiac patients in our region and save on costs required to send patients to Detroit when we can’t accommodate them here. Even though we were in the midst of the pandemic the Ford government said this project was going to get done and they are delivering on the promise.”
– Karen Riddell
Windsor Regional Hospital Acting President, CEO and Chief Nursing Executive
“This is an important milestone for Windsor Regional Hospital. It will save lives and provide the necessary clinical space for our healthcare team. We appreciate the government’s commitment to patient care and safety.”
– Dr. Wassim Saad
Windsor Regional Hospital Chief of Staff
“I am very pleased to see this investment in Windsor Regional Hospital’s Cath Lab, which will provide access to vital cardiac care for people in our community close to where they live.”
– Anthony Leardi
MPP for Essex
“Our community was heartbroken ten years ago when the previous government decided to leave our cardiac health care capacity unaddressed and shelved the Cardiac Catheterization Lab at Windsor Regional Hospital Ouellette Campus. I want to sincerely thank Premier Ford and Minister Jones for revisiting that decision and for delivering this funding to see our community’s Cardiac Catheterization Lab through.”
– Andrew Dowie
MPP for Windsor-Tecumseh
“This $31 million provincial investment to the renovation and expansion of Windsor Regional Hospital’s cardiac catheterization lab marks a significant milestone in delivering life-saving cardiac care for our growing community. As a significant healthcare provider for over 400,000 people, this investment will ensure that Windsor-Essex residents have timely access to state-of-the-art cardiac services. This investment, alongside a commitment to our new Acute Care hospital on Country Road 42, is indicative of this provincial government’s steadfast support for Building Windsor’s Future.”
– Drew Dilkens
Mayor of Windsor
Additional Resources
Ontario Investing $30 Million More in Windsor Regional Hospital
Ontario Investing $9.8 Million in Planning for a New Hospital for Windsor-Essex
Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care