St. Mary’s General Hospital in Kitchener to get new new cardiac catheterization lab

On Tuesday, the province announced funding for a new cardiac catheterization lab at St. Mary’s General Hospital in Kitchener.

The Ontario government says it is supporting the hospital, which is one of 20 regional cardiac care centres, with the planning, design and implementation of the lab.

It says the hospital will see 3,500 square feet dedicated to the lab, which will allow for more cardiac procedures to be completed while also cutting down on wait times.

“Our government is continuing to make record investments in health care to connect more Ontarians to convenient care options, close to home,” Health Minister Sylvia Jones said.

“The addition of this new cardiac lab will allow even more people across Southwestern Ontario to access state-of-the-art cardiac care in their community, when they need it.”

The province notes that the regional cardiac centre at SMGH is one of the busiest across Ontario, and that the number of patients is expected to grow rapidly over the next five years.

Global News has reached out to the province to see what the timetable and costs will be for opening the catheterization lab.