Millions of dollars are needed before hospice care comes to Durham Region.
Plans have been announced by Durham Region Hospice, a partnership between Durham Hospice and VON Durham Community Corporation, to bring a 10-bed facility to Whitby and a five-bed facility to Clarington.
VON Durham Community Corporation Board Chair Chris Raynor says they’ve kicked off a $15-million capital campaign in hopes of opening the facility by next spring.
“We’ve been trying to bring residential hospice care to Durham for probably 10 years,” said Raynor. “We have outreach programs, so we have palliative and a grief [program.]”
Raynor says hospice gives people a home like setting to spend their final days, including private rooms, free parking, unrestricted visiting hours, visits from family pets and the ability to live freely.
The fundraising campaign is being run in tandem with the campaign for the planned Oak Ridges Hospice in Port Perry.
Anyone looking for information on the campaign can visit the Durham Region Hospice website.