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After years of planning and hard work, CHEO has reached a significant milestone by finalizing the design for the new Integrated Treatment Centre on its Smyth Road campus as shovels enter the ground spring 2025.
The treatment centre, which will be built in front of the main CHEO building, will significantly enhance care and coordination while improving access to services for children and youth living with complex medical, developmental, behavioural, and mental health needs.
This state-of-the-art, six-storey, approximately 200,000-square-foot facility is part of CHEO’s broader transformation initiative aimed at creating a more integrated and comprehensive health-care experience for young patients.
CHEO reached this point thanks to families, youth, staff and medical staff who collaborated and provided feedback to improve the proposed design of several areas in the new building.
During tours of mock-up simulations in the summer of 2024, clinicians noticed the original design of washrooms to be used by students at the CHEO Preschool didn’t meet all accessibility needs.
While dimensions for the rooms couldn’t change, items and furniture could be adjusted for students who use assistive devices – like wheelchairs or walkers. Feedback led to adjusting doorways, as well as adding accessible railings and sinks suitable for wheelchair users.
“It makes a world of difference when you can actually step into the space and start thinking about what makes sense for the children we see,” said Amber Carty, an educator with the CHEO Preschool and team lead.
“The children at CHEO Preschool need special support. Understanding how our staff and children interact helped us make changes to create an inclusive environment for everyone."
This type of collaboration also continues to shape the transformation of the treatment centre’s model of care – how CHEO plans to integrate and coordinate care and improve access to services–as families, youth, staff and medical staff design different solutions and evolve them based on collaboration.
Christine Dalgleish, who chairs the CHEO Integrated Treatment Centre Family Advisory Council, said she’s been impressed by CHEO’s dedication and willingness to think outside the box.
“I know behavioural change is incredibly difficult, but I do feel like there is not only an openness to try, but a genuine desire to make things easier for children, youth and families,” said Dalgleish.
The new centre will bring together a multidisciplinary team of specialists to provide seamless care under one roof. It will also feature cutting-edge technology to support early diagnosis, personalized treatment plans, and advanced therapies.
This transformation is designed to meet the evolving needs of patients and their families, with an emphasis on addressing wait times, offering specialized care, and enhancing communication among health-care providers.
Additionally, the centre will incorporate spaces designed specifically for family support, ensuring a holistic approach to care that involves loved ones in the treatment process.
CHEO has also engaged with First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities in the centre’s design, and those discussions will continue in the shaping of the model of care. An Indigenous Caregiver Advisory Group will also help guide important decisions and ensure Indigenous perspectives are included.
This new facility is set to be a cornerstone of CHEO’s commitment to providing world-class health care for children and youth, ensuring that they receive the support they need to thrive.
It’s a key part of CHEO’s ambitious 10-year plan to transform its Smyth campus to better meet the needs of children and youth today and in the future, which is supported by the CHEO Foundation’s Kids These Days campaign, the largest in CHEO’s history.
EllisDon Infrastructure OCH Inc. is building the multi-year project, which is funded by the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (MCCSS) in partnership with CHEO and Infrastructure Ontario (IO).