Linda was elected Member of Provincial Parliament to represent the riding of Brampton Centre on October 2nd, 2003. In addition to her parliamentary duties, Linda is a member of the Cabinet Committee on Inter-Provincial, Municipal and Federal Relations. She currently chairs the Standing Committee on General Government and in November 2005 was appointed Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Children & Youth Services. She was elected to Brampton City Council in 1991 and served as Alderman and then City Councillor for twelve years. Shortly after arriving at Queen's Park, Linda spoke to the Minister of Health and the Premier about Brampton's desperate need for a new hospital. In October 2004, construction crews and cranes arrived at the Bovaird Drive and Bramalea Road site. The new Civic Hospital is scheduled to open in the fall of 2007. As well, Linda strongly advocated the redevelopment of the William Osler Health Centre's Peel Memorial site on Lynch Street - she was successful in her discussions and construction is slated to begin in 2009/2010 on this multi-million dollar redevelopment. In November 2004 Linda introduced her first Private Member's Bill entitled "The Home Fire Sprinklers Act, 2004". This Bill, revised and reintroduced in October 2005, is aimed at preventing loss of life to fire, by ensuring that all new residential housing will be constructed with fire sprinklers. Born in Cork, Ireland, Linda moved to Heart Lake in 1983. She and her husband John have three sons and a golden retriever. For frequent updates, visit Linda Jeffrey for more information.
McGuinty Government Invests
In More Critical Care Beds
Funding Will Enhance Hospital Resources
For Better Access to Emergency Care
Brampton, ON April 20, 2007 - The McGuinty government is investing $1,000.000 so that patients will have better access to critical care services at William Osler Health Centre – Peel Memorial Hospital Campus, Linda Jeffrey MPP Brampton Centre announced today on behalf of Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman.
"The funding we are announcing will provide immediate operating support for the William Osler Health Centre. This investment will in turn will help free up emergency department resources so that hospital staff can respond effectively to the needs of critically ill patients," said Jeffrey. "These additional ICU beds will result in a more efficient Emergency Department triage process and reduce ambulance off-load delays"
The investment will go toward the operation of an additional two critical care beds at Peel Memorial Hospital. The new critical care beds will ensure that critically ill patients flow through the emergency department to the appropriate intensive care or critical care unit. There they will receive 24/7 care from specialized health care teams. It is anticipated that each of these beds will provide access for an additional 47 patients per year.
"We are pleased that there is a recognition that Peel Memorial has a consistently high Emergency Department volume" said Terry Miller, Vice-Chair Central West LHIN. "We anticipate that the new beds will be fully operational by the end of June".
Today's announcement is part of a $7.5 million investment to fund 13 additional critical care beds at seven hospitals under the province's $142 million Emergency Department Action Plan. The Plan, announced in October 2006, aims to relieve pressures in hospital emergency departments and to ensure that the health care system has increased capacity to meet the needs of Ontario patients.
"We recognize that hospital emergency departments do not operate in isolation from other health care services," Smitherman said. "This investment reflects our belief that building capacity in areas such as critical care services will address many of the challenges facing emergency departments."
This initiative is part of the government's plan for innovation in public health care, building a system that delivers on three priorities - keeping Ontarians healthy, reducing wait times and providing better access to doctors and nurses.