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Thursday, November 25, 2021

Lisa Thompson announces operational funding for Huron Hospice

BY DENNY SCOTT

Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson took part in a special event at Huron Residential Hospice last Thursday to announce $190,000 in funding to cover operational costs for the facility.


The funds, which are part of a COVID-19 relief effort, brings the 2021-2022 investment by the province in the site to $610,000.
The event didn’t just offer the chance for Thompson to announce the funding, but for Hospice Board Chair Jay McFarlan to announce that the hospice board was halfway through its fundraising effort to renovate the site, adding two new beds for a total of six and relocating two beds to reclaim family- and child-focused spaces within the site.


The board has to raise $680,000 for the project, which will then be matched by the provincial government, McFarlan said, giving the group $1.3 million of its $1.6 million goal.


McFarlan said that, after the expansion, the site will be one of the most cost-effective hospices in the province, adding the cost of operating a hospice bed is one-third of what it costs to have a hospice patient in a hospital bed.


McFarlan also said he is looking forward to the government’s new budget, anticipating that more funding would be made available to sites like the hospice, which are currently 50 per cent funded through the government and 50 per cent through private donations.


Thompson said she was glad to make the funding announcement and help out. The hospice’s impact is far-reaching, she said, and the board is a good partner with both the government and with healthcare systems in the area. 


She said the funding is the government’s way of demonstrating its commitment to the community through providing for such an important service.


In a press release after the event, Thompson announced that Jessica’s House, a hospice in South Huron, will be receiving a one-time increase of $142,000 this year while Huron Shores Hospice will receive an additional $47,000. The announcement represents a 45 per cent increase in funding for each site.