Ontario’s hospitals are embracing a new era of innovation and collaboration by building care models that better reflect the lives and needs of the communities they serve.
For decades, hospitals have been global leaders in efficiency, constantly improving care delivery while meeting rising demands. Today, with a rapidly growing and aging population, the number of Ontarians living with chronic and complex conditions is set to nearly double by 2040. This presents a powerful opportunity: to redesign care around peoples’ needs and ensure every patient receives the right care, in the right place.
This shift is well underway. Hospitals are not only managing change — they’re driving it and laying the foundations for a more integrated and patient-centred health system. Across Ontario, there are countless examples of how hospitals are using innovation and integration to create new models of care to support patients and their communities.
This issue of Health System News showcases a range of stories including one in Toronto where five hospitals came together to address a pressing need: long wait times for non-cancerous gynecological surgeries. By pooling resources and extending access to operating rooms at Women’s College Hospital, the partnership reduced a significant portion of the backlog in just months. Surgeons from across the region were able to perform procedures more quickly, showing how collaboration across hospital sites can make the system more responsive and equitable.
In Tillsonburg, a new Transitional Care Unit (TCU) at Tillsonburg District Memorial Hospital (TDMH) is providing a vital bridge for Alternate Level of Care-Long Term Care (ALC-LTC) patients who are waiting for placement. The unit brings together an interdisciplinary team of nurses, personal support workers, and medical practitioners who develop personalized treatment plans that align with each patient’s discharge goals. By tailoring resources to the unique needs of their ALC-LTC patients, TDMH is reducing unnecessary long-term care admissions and helping patients regain confidence in their daily lives. For many, discharge destinations after receiving care in the TCU have shifted from a long-term care facility toward more independent options such as retirement residences or returning home.
A partnership between McMaster Children’s Hospital, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), and Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital has led to the creation of Ontario’s first Extensive Needs Service (ENS). The program is designed to support children and youth with urgent and complex medical, developmental, and social challenges. ENS integrates hospital care with community partners across Hamilton, Niagara, Haldimand-Norfolk, and Brantford, embedding liaisons to bring rehabilitation and social supports closer to families. Early evaluation shows shorter inpatient stays, fewer emergency visits, and stronger collaboration across the system — evidence of how wrap-around, family-centered care can transform outcomes.
These examples illustrate the range of innovation underway across the province. From shared surgical resources to transitional care and wrap-around supports for patients with complex needs, hospitals are addressing diverse challenges through collaboration, integration, and patient-centred design. The common thread is a focus on using limited resources strategically to deliver greater impact.
While the pressures on Ontario’s health system remain significant, hospitals are demonstrating that with partnership and new models of care, it is possible to improve access and outcomes for patients and create a foundation for a healthier future.