Historical Milestones

Major Historical Milestones

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1896

The inaugural meeting of the National Sanitarium Association (NSA), West Park's founding body, was held on April 23.


1904

The Toronto Free Hospital for Consumptive Poor was opened by the NSA and Sir William Gage, the NSA's founder, on Sept. 2.


1908

The Connaught School of Nursing, which was established on campus and later became affiliated with the University of Toronto, graduated its first nurse.


1909

The Open Air School for Tuberculous Children started classes in order to ensure children being treated in hospital for the disease continued to receive education.


1910

The Great Fire of Dec. 1 destroyed several buildings. Pavilions were built shortly after to accommodate displaced TB patients.


1912

The Main Medical Building (Kathleen Honorah Prittie) was opened. Surgeries performed there included pneumothorax, a common procedure for early TB patients.


1913

The Queen Mary Hospital for Tuberculous Children - the only hospital in the world devoted to the treatment of children with the disease - was opened on June 3.


1916

The Davies Cottage for tuberculous infants was opened, providing care and comfort for even the youngest TB patients.


1917

The hospital's first x-ray machines and fluoroscope were installed.


1924

The hospital's name changed to The Toronto Hospital for Consumptives, but was more commonly known in the community as The Weston Sanatorium or Weston Hospital.


1926

The hospital joined the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA).


1931

The first major operation (spinal fusion) was performed on Apr. 29 in the Main Medical Building.


1933

The Surgical (A.E. Ames) Building was opened and became the new home for most surgical procedures.


1938

The E.L. Ruddy Building was opened, bringing the total bed complement at the hospital to 650.


1945 (circa)

The first effective medication, streptomycin, was discovered and used effectively in tandem with other medications to treat tuberculosis. TB mortality rates began to decline.


1952

Fires destroyed the Pavilions and Assembly Hall on May 23.


1955

The hospital received its first accreditation award from the Canadian Council on Hospital Accreditation.


1959

An Outpatient Department and Chronic Illness Unit were opened.


1962

The hospital assumed the care of Inuit adults and children with tuberculosis through a government initiative to help curb the prevalence of TB among this vulnerable population.


1966

The Osler School of Nursing was established on site.


1969

A Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Unit was opened, expanding the hospital's evolving expertise in the treatment of respiratory disorders.


1972

The Sanatoria for Consumptives Act was repealed. The Toronto Hospital, Weston was designated a chronic hospital under the Public Hospitals Act.


1973

The Amputee Program was established.


1974

A new physiotherapy department and a Stroke/Neurological Rehabilitation Program were opened.


1976

The hospital's name changed to West Park Hospital.


1980

The hospital's Main Building and the Dorothy Macham Day Hospital were opened.


1981

Terry Fox visited the Prosthetic Department on his Marathon of Hope. A formal Respirology Program was established.


1984

West Park's begins its first major fundraising capital campaign to build the Gage Building.


1985

A Chronic Assisted Ventilatory Care (CAVC) Unit was established.


1986

The Gage Transitional Living Centre/Gage Building opened.


1996

West Park opened its Assessment Centre, which provides independent, third-party assessments and other services for the insurance industry.


1997

A Geriatric Rehabilitation Service was opened.


1999

The Prittie Building was demolished to accommodate a new long-term care centre.


2000

A renovated 22-bed state-of-the-art TB Unit was opened. The hospital's name changed to West Park Healthcare Centre.


2001

A new 26-bed Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation Service opened.


2002

The new 200-bed long-term care centre was opened.

West Park's foundation launched its $26-million Raising the Bar Campaign.

The NSA donated $1 million to establish the first ever NSA Chair for Respiratory Rehabilitation Research.


2003

West Park responded to the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) crisis by opening an interim SARS unit in less than six hours. A new 26-bed Functional Enhancement Service opened.


2004

West Park celebrates its centennial year.


2007

West Park implements Electronic Health Record – including Clinical Documentation and Medication Order Entry/Medication Administration Record.


2007

West Park is designated by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care as a Centre of Excellence for Long-Term Ventilation.


2008

West Park approved for $3 million planning and development grant from MOHLTC to support a detailed business case for redevelopment.


2011

West Park establishes an independent Family Health Team, offering primary care services on site until it relocated in 2018.


2011

West Park receives Provincial approval to move ahead with campus development and hospital expansion year.


2018

On October 11 West Park breaks ground on a massive construction project, with a contract value of $1.2 billion, which will include construction of a new six-storey hospital.