New expanded care centre will connect more people in the region to high-quality care closer to home
TORONTO — The Ontario government is celebrating the opening of Unity Health Toronto’s new ambulatory care centre at St. Michael’s Hospital’s emergency department. Supported by the province’s $204 million investment, the hospital’s historic Shuter Wing has been renovated to create an expanded ambulatory care space that will serve more than 70,000 walk-in patients every year. The project is part of the government’s plan to protect Ontario’s health-care system by investing $64 billion in more than 50 major hospital projects across the province over the next 10 years.
“Our government is making historic investments to protect Ontario’s health-care system, ensuring that more people can connect to convenient care in their community,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “We are excited to celebrate the opening of this new care area at St. Michael’s Hospital, building vital emergency care capacity for Toronto and helping more families get connected to world-class care close to home.”
The new ambulatory care centre will serve more than 70,000 walk-in patients annually and includes a dedicated walk-in entrance, a separate waiting area for ambulatory patients, private exam rooms, a confidential discharge suite and a centralized caregiver pod. This new milestone is one part of the province’s plan to support St. Michael’s Hospital’s Peter Gilgan Patient Care Tower project. The project includes five new purpose-built, state-of-the-art operating rooms designed to incorporate medical imaging equipment such as MRIs, CT scanners and X-rays. It also includes enlarged facilities for orthopedic surgery, oncology, coronary care and respirology.
Ontario is also investing over $15 million to support Unity Health Toronto with the planning, design and implementation of its relocated
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at St. Michael’s Hospital. The new facility, which will be completed by summer 2027, will connect critically ill newborns and their families in the Toronto area to better, more convenient neonatal intensive care. This project will see over 12,000 square feet of space renovated, and the entire NICU unit of bassinets will be relocated to a larger space at the new patient care tower at St. Michael’s Hospital.
Quick Facts
- As part of Budget 2026, A Plan to Protect Ontario, the government is investing an additional $1.1 billion into our hospital sector, representing a 4 per cent increase in annual support for the fourth year in a row.
- The Ontario government is also investing over $1 billion to redevelop and expand Unity Health Toronto’s St. Joseph’s Health Centre. This funding will build a new state-of-the-art patient care tower and support renovations to the existing hospital to expand much-needed health-care services and improve access to high-quality care for the communities it serves.
- Over the next 10 years, Ontario is investing approximately $64 billion in major health infrastructure. This is part of the government’s plan to get shovels in the ground on more than 50 major hospital projects across the province, which will deliver approximately 3,000 new hospital beds to enhance access to quality care and build a connected, people-first health-care system.
- The Ontario government is investing $257 million in 2025-26 to support critical infrastructure upgrades and repairs at 126 hospitals and 66 community health-care facilities across the province, a 12.3 per cent increase from the previous year.
- In 2025-26, Unity Health Toronto is receiving $11 million through the Health Infrastructure Renewal Fund, to support the critical infrastructure needs of its hospitals.
"Today marks a very exciting milestone for St. Michael’s Hospital, a site of Unity Health Toronto, and the patients and communities we serve. The expanded and redesigned BMO Ambulatory Care Area of our Slaight Family Emergency Department helps reduce crowding and shorten wait times by streamlining care for people who do not need a hospital bed. It also helps patients receive safer, faster, and higher-quality care from the moment they arrive. This project strengthens our hospital’s ability to deliver world-class trauma, emergency and specialized care to patients from downtown Toronto and across Ontario. Thank you to the Government of Ontario and our generous donors for bringing this important project to life."
- Altaf Stationwala
President and CEO, Unity Health Toronto
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