OTTAWA — An additional investment of $1.2 billion for the Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (WAHA) Hospital Redevelopment Project was made by the federal government recently.
Funding towards the redevelopment project will serve the 12,000 people in the Weeneebayko region, providing fair access to quality health care services, indicates a release.
It will include the construction of a new hospital facility, administrative offices, staff accommodations and a dedicated ambulatory care centre on Moose Factory Island.
Canada is also accelerating investments to make health and safety improvements to the existing Weeneebayko General Hospital facility to ensure patients in the region have access to health care as the redevelopment project progresses.
The funding will be flowed through the Province of Ontario and WAHA.
“For far too long, First Nations people in the Weeneebayko area region have lacked access to quality health care, with the current hospital a stark reminder of the disparity in care and ongoing impacts of colonialism,” said Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, in a statement. “This investment from the federal government means that the redevelopment project is no longer in jeopardy, and we are taking a significant collective step to ensure that community members can get the services they need in a culturally responsive way, and closer to their loved ones. Earlier in May, I said that this project was an opportunity for the prime minister to right a wrong of the past, and I’m happy to see that the redevelopment has finally been supported in full.”
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