MSH has put the community first since the day it opened its doors in 1990. More than a community hospital, it’s an award-winning health care hub for innovative, patient-centred care. Here’s how MSH stands apart from its peers.
Tucked inside The Stollery Family Centre for Childbirth & Children, the Alongside Midwifery Unit (AMU) is the first of its kind in Canada, combining midwifery services with the immediate availability of emergency medical care. The collaborative nature of this partnership means expecting parents can choose between a midwife-led birth and an obstetrician, depending on their preference. With one in five of MSH’s baby deliveries taking place in the AMU last year, the unit provides more options to the community.
One way MSH enhances community care is through key health care partnerships. The hospital partners with SickKids through the Kids Health Alliance, is part of the Princess Margaret Cancer Care Network (PMCCN), and has created a pathway for advanced cardiac care with Unity Health Toronto — St. Michael’s Hospital. When patients require radiation therapy during treatment at The Shakir Rehmatullah Cancer Centre, MSH partners with Southlake Health to provide this vital service. These partnerships offer onsite access to collaborative acute paediatric care between hospitals, clinical trials, connections to additional specialists, and more.
The Gale & Graham Wright Breast Health Centre first opened in 2007 and is known for its multidisciplinary approach to the complex and stressful process of diagnosing and treating breast cancer. In 2022, thanks to donor support, the centre relocated to a larger space to accommodate more than 4,500 patient visits annually. MSH also recently collaborated with the PMCCN to launch a Breast Cancer Survivorship Pilot Program providing extended care to eligible patients struggling with significant physical and mental health effects from their cancer treatments.
Although diagnostic imaging may bring to mind X-rays and ultrasounds, MSH’s state-of-the-art, 2,465-square-foot IR Suite offers so much more. Using the best technology available, radiologists and technologists perform real-time, minimally invasive diagnostic procedures, including biopsies, angiograms, and abscess drainages, to name a few. In the past year, more than 2,900 patients benefited from less painful, lower-risk procedures with shorter recovery times. ■
