A hospital better adapted to needs, in 2026

Several mayors of Vaudreuil-Soulanges, health sector staff, committed citizens and local and national media gathered at the CLSC Vaudreuil-Dorion on March 22, as part of an announcement in connection with the Vaudreuil-Soulanges hospital.

The presence of Prime Minister Philippe Couillard and Health Minister Gaétan Barrette alongside regional deputies Marie-Claude Nichols and Lucie Charlebois suggested from the start of the press conference that there was a major announcement for the regional hospital project.

The Prime Minister took the floor to announce what he described as a new step in the project. Concretely, he announced that the Vaudreuil-Soulanges hospital project has been reviewed and doubled in capacity. Rather than containing the 250 beds initially planned, the regional hospital will have 404 beds. An operating room with 10 rooms and an emergency room that can accommodate 41 stretchers are also added.

Of the 404 beds, 217 will be dedicated to medicine, 94 to surgery, 24 to pediatrics, 25 to obstetrics and 44 to psychiatry. In addition to the 10 operating rooms, two of which will be dedicated to obstetrics, the operating room will include a recovery room with 14 stretchers and 25 stretchers for one-day surgery.

These changes are justified by the demographic evolution of the Vaudreuil-Soulanges region. The population is growing and so are the needs. This adjustment is obviously necessary, suggested Philippe Couillard during his speech. Health Minister Gaétan Barrette went on to say that all the analyses carried out by the CISSSMO clearly showed that the initial project with 250 beds was clearly insufficient to meet regional needs.

I confirm without a shadow of a doubt the construction of a major hospital; one of the largest hospitals after the major projects in Montreal, added the Prime Minister.

Timeline

At the same time, the Prime Minister raised the issue of the timetable. He said that construction will begin in 2022, and end in 2026. This project is subject to the Major Projects Directive and must comply with the planning stages provided for by law. Consequently, it is necessary to consider devoting approximately four years to complete the business file and thus

start work, we can read in the press release.

The entire project is valued at 1.5 billion dollars. It will be entirely financed by the Quebec Infrastructure Plan of the Ministry of Health and Social Services.

What we are announcing today is the future. The hospital that we are going to build here will be a well-thought-out hospital, at a size that takes into account the development of the region. We don't want to do the same as in Le Gardeur, for example, where we built too small, and 15 years later, we have to invest to keep the hospital operational. We want to rely on adequate projections. This is good news,” said Gaétan Barrette.

Deputies Lucie Charlebois and Marie-Claude Nichols said they were moved and delighted with the announcement.

I really want to emphasize teamwork, across the community. Marie-Claude and I are working so hard on this file. I am proud, we have just taken an important step,” launched Lucie Charlebois.

I am happy that a realistic timetable is being presented; I think the Prime Minister has put a lot of emphasis on that. Sometimes people wonder why we don't hear about the hospital, but we work on the file every day. There are a lot of details and aspects to the project, said Marie-Claude Nichols.

Mixed reception

The announcement was received mixed by those who attended the press conference, and especially on social media, where much more cynicism is tingling the reactions.

For his part, the mayor of Rivière-Beaudette and prefect of the MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges Patrick Bousez had a nuanced position. What we remember is that it is a major investment of 1.5 billion dollars. We are doubling the area; we can only be happy about that. However, what we are sad about is the schedule. What has happened since 2010? ”, he wonders. And to add: We are going to take this one file at a time and live with the decisions that will be made.

The reaction is similar from Denis Lapointe, president of the Vaudreuil-Soulanges Hospital Foundation. I am happy, we have been waiting for a long time. Of course, there is a disappointment because the delivery is postponed by 4 years compared to the initial deadline of 2022. But we're doubling the area, so I think it's worth the wait and that the population comes out on top,” he said.

On social networks, the majority of Internet users expressed deep disappointment to see the project postponed again.

By: Stéphanie Lacroix

Journalist, Viva Media

Read more on VIVA media: A hospital better adapted to needs, in 2026 http://www.viva-media.ca/?p=43714

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