Province greenlights new, 72-bed rehab facility for Sudbury

St. Joseph’s Continuing Care Centre said Monday it has received approval by Health Minister Sylvia Jones for the final 36 rehab beds of the centre’s rehabilitation bed expansion project.

St. Joseph’s received approval for the first 36 beds in April 2022, meaning construction of the new, 72-bed facility at 319 Lasalle Blvd. can begin in February.

“The expanded St. Joseph’s Continuing Care Centre will ensure patients and their families in the region can connect to the care they need, close to home, for years to come,” Jones is quoted as saying in a new release.

The Sudbury project is one of 50 the government is funding across the province.

One complete, the new site will replace the temporary operations at the Clarion Hotel, where almost 1,400 patients have received care since April 2020.

Once built, the new space and the support and care provided within will help older adults regain their independence.

“This project will have a positive impact on chronically high ALC pressures in our community and address a long-standing undersupply of rehabilitative care beds in the City of Greater Sudbury’” Kari Gervais, St. Joseph’s president and CEO, said in the release.

St. Joseph’s received approval for the first 36 beds in April 2022, meaning construction of the new, 72-bed facility at 319 Lasalle Blvd. can begin in February. (Chelsea Papineau/CTV News)

“More significantly, individuals and particularity frail older adults will have an opportunity for rehabilitation so they can continue living independently in the community.”

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St. Joseph’s is a 64-bed rehabilitation facility and the only stand-alone specialty hospital in the northeast. In collaboration with Health Sciences North and other health system partners, St. Joe’s opened an additional 60 beds at a temporary site at the Clarion Hotel in Sudbury in April 2020.

A total of 36 will be relocated to the new Lasalle location once it is ready for occupancy in 2024, and the remaining 24 beds will be relocated when Phase 2 opens in fall 2025.