CHEO unveils design plans for 1Door4Care building

CHEO marked an exciting milestone for youth patient care on Tuesday, unveiling its plan for the CHEO Integrated Treatment Centre, also known as 1Door4Care.

The new six-storey building will be constructed in front of CHEO's main campus, and offer services for children and youth living with complex medical, developmental, behavioural and mental health needs. It will include a multi-use clinic space, a physiotherapy rehab gym, expanded mental health clinics, an indoor and outdoor multi-use space, a space for children and youth with complex emotional needs, state-of-the-art treatment rooms, advanced technology to enable virtual care, family support and community spaces, and a new parking structure.

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"It's an amazing feeling to move from years and years of planning and imagining to the crane coming on site tomorrow," says CHEO president and CEO Alex Munter. "The 1Door4Care dream began 16 years ago as we recognized the challenges faced by families with children and youth with special needs, mental health challenges and complex medical conditions. We wanted to create programs and spaces that help every child and youth live their best life through an innovative, individualized model of care that centers around the child and their family."

Dr. Lise Bisnaire, CHEO 1Door4Care executive director, says the project is about working differently in a building designed to put families and children first in order to provide the most effective care possible.

"This is by far one of the most important projects that we've had, bringing together all the specialists and all the team members that can work directly with families so they don't have to go to different places," says Bisnaire. "This is a community that deeply cares for the families and the kids that live here [at CHEO]. These kids are our future and so we're very grateful very, very grateful for the donations that this community has given to children, not just in Ottawa, but to the region. We serve kids from near and far, from multiple cultures, and we want to keep doing that even better."

The construction of the new $371M building is expected to be complete in 2028 and is part of a multi-year project funded by the Province of Ontario and CHEO, which will serve more than 40,000 families each year and provide an improved model of care being co-created by clinicians and patients.

• IN PHOTOS: A look at plans for CHEO's new state-of-the-art 1Door4Care building

"It's amazing how much CHEO has involved the families in this right from the beginning," says Leanne Findlay-Van Der Zweep, a CHEO family leader, who helped to provide input in the new building's design. Her son was born with a rare genetic condition and has required years of complex care from nearly every department in CHEO.

"That's always something that has been a challenge. Even though we've received great care, we've had to get it from different buildings and now this will bring it all together so families can get it all in one place and feel supported in their journey," she says. "We've been asked our input on where to put strollers, where should we put the doors, where should the signage be, what are the types of things that families need, like lockers and sinks. Those things are things that you don't think about when you work here, but when you're a family here you can really see how you can use those things. These will be things that where we'll have a place to go where we will be able to clean up to prepare for the next appointment, so it's touching."