On-going
Way Forward Commitment:
A key step in transforming the province’s mental health and addictions system is ensuring people are closer to the services they need. As an outdated psychiatric facility located in St. John’s and built for acute and long-term care, the Waterford Hospital has outlived its usefulness and only provides care to between two and three per cent of those who need mental health services. Our government will replace the Waterford Hospital with a new, smaller mental health and addictions facility that is supported by a network of small residential facilities and community-based services located where people need them – closer to home. Through this approach, we will reduce the number and duration of hospitalizations and improve patients’ quality of care and quality of life through a range of community-based programs focused on peer support, evidence-based case management, housing and home support, awareness and prevention.
In 2018-19, our government will proceed with the procurement of a new facility to replace the Waterford Hospital, issue a Request for Proposals to assess need related to community-based stabilization services such as community crisis beds, and introduce additional mobile crisis response units in Central and Western regions, as well as additional walk-in clinics under all Regional Health Authorities.
Our government’s approach to improving mental health and addictions outcomes will add new dedicated mental health acute care beds and community crisis beds in Labrador and provide responses specific to the needs of Indigenous people.
What We’ve Accomplished:
- On March 29, 2018, the Provincial Government announced the replacement of the Waterford Hospital with a new 102-bed, state-of-the-art mental health and addictions facility to be built in St. John’s. The new facility will be built on the Health Sciences Centre campus and will be connected to the existing hospital with site work expected to begin in summer 2019.
- After further consultation with psychiatrists, the number of beds for the facility has increased from 94 to 102. It will be constructed as an extension of the Health Sciences Centre, and also include a parking garage with a minimum of 500 additional parking spaces.
- The Provincial Government has identified Atlantic Healthcare Group, Avalon Healthcare Partnership, and NL Healthcare Partnership as the three teams of businesses that will now compete to design, build, finance and maintain the new adult mental health and addictions facility in St. John’s. A Request for Proposals will be issued to the three teams this spring.
- A series of community-based services will be expanded to communities throughout the province. These services will include assertive community treatment (ACT) and flexible ACT teams, community crisis beds, 24/7 supervised living arrangements and mobile crisis response teams.
- On May 16, 2018, the Department of Health and Community Services released a Request for Proposals to assess need for Community Crisis Beds throughout the province.
- In late August 2018, the Department of Health and Community Services hired an external consulting firm (Lennika Consulting Inc.) to conduct a needs assessment of community crisis stabilization services in Newfoundland and Labrador. The final report has been received by the Department and is currently under review.
- Walk-in clinics, also known as DoorWays, are now available in over 50 sites throughout the province, including correctional settings, with additional sites to follow.
- A Value-for-Money assessment completed by EY has recommended that the Provincial Government partner with the business community to procure the new facility with a design, build, finance and maintain (DBFM) approach and would result in 12.3 per cent in cost savings over 30 years compared to the traditional design-build methods.
- On November 14, 2018, the Department of Transportation and Works released a Request for Qualifications to establish an industry short list to solicit proposals from DBFM proponents. Contracts have been awarded to engage external procurement/technical/fairness advisors for the project.
- On November 26, 2018, the Department of Transportation and Works released a Request for Proposals to procure a Consulting Team to develop the Design-Bid-Build tender package for a six-bed Mental Health Care Unit at the Labrador Health Centre in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
- A contract has been awarded for the design of a new six-bed mental health unit at the Labrador Health Centre in Happy Valley-Goose Bay to Fougere Menchenton Architecture Incorporated. A tender for construction will be issued later this year with the project expected to be completed in 2022.
- Mobile crisis response teams have been established in St. John’s, Corner Brook, and Labrador West, with additional teams to follow.
- Two new permanent psychiatrists have been hired for the Labrador-Grenfell Health region. One will work within the region from Happy Valley-Goose Bay. The other is providing telepsychiatry services dedicated solely to Labrador from St. John’s. A third psychiatrist is being recruited for Labrador.
News Releases:
Procurement Begins on New Adult Mental Health and Addictions Facility