Group 7 - Hospital Remodelling Conflict

Description

The Ryerson General Hospital has been chosen by the Toronto Urban Planning Department to undergo remodelling. This project proposes to create a bus station for easier public access, in place of one of the wings at Ryerson General Hospital. According to the Toronto Urban Planning team, the wing has been reported to be of no functional use. Despite the records, this wing held a large overflow waiting area, 24-hour Starbucks and a staff lounge. This renovation has been set to officially commence starting December 2019, and sought to be completed by the end of 2021. Health care workers are upset as this will cause an inconvenience to their daily work life through noise pollution, crowded halls and work area due to lack of waiting areas. This will impede on their quality of work environment. Hospital staff also find their lack of access to the only 24 hour cafe in the hospital to be inconvenient. The staff lounge is a necessary environment for healthcare workers to take breaks. Furthermore, this proposed demolition of the wing has raised more concerns regarding health and safety hazards in the work environment. The occupational health department has to not only address the everyday hazards of a hospital setting, but as well as the novel hazards that are introduced by demolitioning the wing. Demolitioning the wing requires external workers to come on site and carry out work, which means the number of people who are likely to get impacted on site will increase. A focus group and gap analysis will be carried out to determine the best case scenario that encompasses all aspects of safety, convenience and health. Three alternative scenarios are then debriefed. In conclusion, the community, healthcare workers and family members of the patients have decided that relocating the construction of the bus station on the nearby empty field is the best outcome for all parties. They close this new deal with the Toronto Urban Planning Department.