The future Palliative Care unit at the Lachine Hospital: almost like home

The Lachine Hospital modernization project will double the size of its palliative care unit, which currently has five beds and will have ten once the new building is completed. More space, but also a desire to design the rooms as if the patient was at home. Julie Boyer, head of the Medicine, Surgery and the Palliative Care Unit at the Lachine Hospital, explains the concept. "During the workshops that were held to reflect on the project's orientations, we wanted to reduce the clinical aspect of the rooms so that they would look as little like a hospital as possible.”

The result? Optimal placement of windows in the rooms, imitation wood tile ceilings, direct access to the terrace overlooking the garden, a room with a therapeutic bathand an enlarged section for families with a designated play area. These are some of the elements that will enhance the new unit.

Massage therapy and pet therapy will also be offered to patients or, better yet, a room will be available for their pets to come visit.

The medical chief of Palliative Care Services at the Lachine Hospital, Dr. Luc Daudelin, is very pleased with the upcoming changes: "This project is very important to us, because we are committed to offering high quality services to patients who are at the end of life and to their loved ones. We will be able to make these services accessible to a greater number of people in an even warmer and better adapted environment. Everyone will benefit." 

It is anticipated that the number of admissions, which is about a 100 per year, will increase significantly once the work is completed in 2025.

The palliative care unit is the last stop in the final stage of life, so why not make it as comforting and supportive as possible.