Love, Scarborough

Scarborough is one of Canada’s most diverse communities and deserves the same innovative technology and updated facilities other Toronto hospitals offer. It’s time for all of us to have equal access to the best healthcare, because our most diverse area is also our most ignored.

Love, Scarborough

Your Support

Dear Toronto,

It’s time for all of us to have equal access to the best healthcare. We are 25% of Toronto’s population, yet we get only 1% of the hospital donations. Our emergency departments are stretched to the limits, and our hospitals are among the oldest in the city.

We are one step closer to giving our diverse Scarborough community the hospitals we deserve. With the backing of our donors, we have raised our first $100 million. And, thanks to recent provincial support, we see even more possibilities in front of us. Now we can begin to improve our facilities, expand our capabilities, and offer more care to more people.

But, we’re just getting started.

Because after decades of being left behind, there is still a lot more catching up to do. We’ve increased our goal and with your support we can build up our hospitals to a level equal to the incredible people who live and work here.

We can’t do it alone.

Our care needs your care. We need you to back us up.

Love, Scarborough

Toronto isn’t Toronto without us.

Our Challenges

Why is our most diverse area also our most ignored?

Scarborough is one of Canada’s most diverse communities, made up of 59% new Canadians and 74% visible minorities. However, our Scarborough hospitals received zero capital funding between 2010 and 2021. We are grateful that the Government of Ontario in 2022 committed $1.2 billion in funding to SHN, but there is still a lot of catching up to do to make up for decades of being left behind.

We're just getting started.

When the Love, Scarborough campaign launched publicly in January 2022, we had no idea it would become a movement. Thanks to recent provincial support and the backing of our donors, we’ve raised our first $100 million. We see the possibilities in front of us to tackle the long list of urgent challenges facing our hospitals. After decades of being left behind, there is still more catching up to do. We’re just getting started.

Equal healthcare shouldn't depend on your postal code.

Scarborough has the lowest average household income in Toronto. And despite making up 25% of the population, we get just 1% of the hospital donations. How is that equal healthcare? Without donations and equitable funding, our hospitals will continue to fall behind our peers. Everyone deserves the same innovative and modern facilities, regardless of postal code.

Healthcare has changed a lot since 1950. Why haven't our hospitals?

Healthcare has undoubtedly come a long way over the last 50 years, with innovation, groundbreaking research, and cutting-edge technology contributing to better health outcomes. Our Centenary Hospital has the oldest operating rooms in the province, with no upgrades since the hospital was built in 1967. The three hospitals that make up SHN – Birchmount, Centenary, and General – were built in 1985, 1967, and 1956, respectively. Our hospitals have seen no major infrastructure upgrades since the new Emergency Department opened at General in 2009.

Why do the newest Canadians get the oldest hospitals?

Scarborough's population is made up of 73% visible minorities, compared to the City of Toronto with just 51%. 57% of Scarborough’s population are new Canadians, versus 47% in the City of Toronto. Between 2011-2016, Ontario received 39% of Canada’s new immigrants, by far the largest proportion of any province. Many of these new immigrants settle in Scarborough.Yet, these new Canadians are receiving care in some of the oldest hospitals. Our Centenary Hospital has the oldest operating rooms in the province, with no significant upgrades since the hospital was built in 1967. The three hospitals that make up SHN – Birchmount, Centenary, and General – were built in 1985, 1967, and 1956, respectively. Our hospitals have seen no major infrastructure upgrades since the new Emergency Department opened at General in 2009.

Why does 25% of the city get 1% of the hospital donations?

Scarborough makes up 25% of Toronto’s population, yet our Scarborough hospitals have historically received less than 1% of the hospital donations. This is based on financial data that charities are required to file annually with the Canada Revenue Agency. We utilized the most recent data published on the CRA website. Between 2019 – 2020 we found that of the total hospital donations in the GTA, SHN Foundation’s share of the total was less than 1%.

Our Emergency Rooms are giving 200%. Now it's your turn.

Scarborough Health Network’s emergency rooms are stretched to the limits. Our Birchmount Emergency was built to accommodate 22,000 visits per year, but currently sees over 50,000. Centenary Emergency was intended to care for 25,000 visits each year, but currently sees over 70,000. Our Emergency Departments are at more than 200% of capacity and need expansion.

Where your donations go

Transforming Kidney Care

Innovating Diagnostic Imaging

Expanding Emergency Care

Evolving Mental Health

Advancing Health Equity and Research

Did you know Scarborough is a diabetes hotspot in the East GTA?

SHN operates Ontario’s largest regional nephrology and home dialysis programs, serving over 6,000 patients each year. But our existing dialysis spaces are at full capacity – or beyond. With the need for dialysis in Scarborough rising each year, we can’t keep up.

Your support will help us build new and expanded dialysis units at our General and Centenary hospitals, expanding our spaces to make sure we can care for our growing community.

Your donations will also help us build the new Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre – a first-of-its-kind community hub in Scarborough for chronic disease education, prevention, and treatment. It will combine multiple healthcare and social services in a single, easily accessible location – one that will be equipped to provide an integrated level of care, unlike any other.

Did you know SHN’s Diagnostic Imaging Department performs over 335,000 scans each year?

In addition to things like X-rays and CT scans, SHN does interventional radiology which allows physicians to guide tiny instruments, such as catheters, through blood vessels or through the skin to treat a wide variety of medical conditions. Diagnostic imaging also supports our highly skilled surgical staff, who see the province’s second-highest number of surgical volumes.

But right now, our diagnostic imaging services at the General Hospital are scattered across five different locations and the current space is outdated and can’t accommodate modern technology.

Your donations will help us build the new 36,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art Northpine Diagnostic Imaging Department. It will include an innovative breast imaging centre and dedicated suites for nuclear medicine, CT, MRI and ultrasound. It will also include a full interventional radiology unit with two procedure rooms, a preparation and recovery bay, and a dedicated nurses station. When complete, the Northpine Diagnostic Imaging Department will be Toronto’s most modern imaging facility. For patients, it means less waiting, and for our physicians, it means more efficiently caring for our community.

Did you know SHN’s Centenary Hospital Emergency Department is over 50 years old?

Hospital emergency departments are at the frontline of the patient experience. Our highly effective teams in our three emergency departments at General, Centenary, and Birchmount hospitals provide incredible care for our community.

However, Scarborough has grown far beyond the capacity of our existing facilities and our capabilities are being surpassed by modern medical technology that could drastically improve the patient experience. Our Emergency Departments are over double their intended capacity, and our talented healthcare teams could do so much more with expanded spaces.

Your donations will allow us to build larger, more modern emergency departments at the Centenary and Birchmount hospitals. Centenary Hospital will feature a no-wait emergency department – a Canadian-first in Scarborough. These new EDs will drastically reduce wait times and ensure our community can depend on us during a medical emergency.

SHN provides mental health care services to meet the unique needs of individuals experiencing mental illness. These include inpatient and crisis services and outpatient programs that help patients transition with greater ease from the hospital to the community and reduce the stigma associated with mental illness.

Despite this excellent care, SHN has identified the need to improve our community-based programs and services to better serve and care for the diverse Scarborough community.

With your support, SHN will create a community-based Mental Health Hub at Warden and Eglinton. This outpatient hub will serve youth ages 18 to 24, adults and seniors, and offer programs and resources to manage and treat mental health challenges.

Scarborough’s diversity is its greatest strength. Our SHN leaders, staff members, and healthcare teams reflect this diversity, and are making strides to advance health equity for Scarborough and beyond.

SHN will do this through the new Scarborough Health Network Research Institue (SHNRI), where we will focus on equity in health through applied research, implementation science, and equity. SHN will be at the forefront of research and introduce new models of care that will better care for diverse populations and cater to our community’s needs. Other institutions will utilize the research and care models, changing the way care is delivered in Toronto, Ontario, and across Canada.

SHN is also partnering with the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus (UTSC) in the development of the Scarborough Academy of Medicine and Integrated Health (SAMIH). This new medical school will train physicians in Scarborough, for Scarborough. It will help home-grown talent stay in Scarborough, and attract healthcare leaders from across the country to study, train, and work in our community.

Through these initiatives and other ongoing health equity programs, SHN is establishing Scarborough as a centre of excellence in healthcare academia and research. SHN will also become a leader in ensuring everyone has equitable access to healthcare, regardless of postal code, socioeconomic status, or background.

Your support will help make these programs a reality, and usher in a new era of healthcare excellence and innovation, right here in Scarborough.

Love, Scarborough Merch

Purchase our hit Love, Scarborough merch famously worn by local Scarborough athletes, celebrities and community members such as Wayne Simmonds, Michael Bunting, Jamaal Magloire, Natalie Spooner and much more.

Our merch is proudly produced in partnership with Scarborough Spots, a local Scarborough business and influencer.

Scarborough Spots is generously donating 100% of all net proceeds from the merchandise to support our Love, Scarborough campaign.

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SHN Foundation gratefully acknowledges our media partners who have generously donated their time, services and media in-kind to support Love, Scarborough.