2000

2000

• The JGH launches its strategic planning process.
• JGH surgeons are among the first in the McGill system – and in some cases, the first in Canada – to incorporate minimally invasive techniques into their practice.
• Launch of the annual JGH Jazz Festival, a week of live, summertime concerts outdoors and inside the hospital to boost the spirits of patients and to entertain staff.

2001

• The Bedard Commission, appointed by the provincial Minister of Health to evaluate hospital performance and efficiency, recognizes the JGH as Montreal's best performing hospital, resulting in the allocation of a performance bonus of $1.9 million.
• The Auxiliary launches Lifeline, a personalized communications system that enables individuals – especially the frail and elderly who live alone – to get immediate medical help at the touch of a button.

2002

• A cell therapy suite, the first of its kind in Canada, launched at the JGH, enabling scientists to offer cutting-edge cell and gene therapy trials to cancer patients in the hospital.
• The Centre for Neurotranslational Research, the first of its kind in Quebec is established to quickly and effectively transform neurologically-related scientific discoveries into clinical applications.
• Total ankle replacement surgery, a superior new method of relieving arthritis pain, is performed at the JGH – the first hospital in Quebec to practice the procedure.
• Inauguration of the JGH Cancer Prevention Centre.
• The hospital's website is launched.

2003

• After an inspection by the Canadian Council on Health Accreditation, team members praise the JGH for its interdisciplinary approach to healthcare, its responsiveness to patients' needs, its commitment to research, and its links with community healthcare agencies and institutions.
• The JGH Foundation launches the most ambitious fundraising campaign in its history, with plans to raise $200 million during the coming years.
• The Herzl Family Practice Centre launches the Goldfarb Breastfeeding Program, an innovative clinic that gives new and expecting mothers information, guidance and coaching about breastfeeding.
• The JGH Mini-Med School is launched, providing an annual series of non-technical lectures by top JGH professionals to heighten public awareness about medical basics, trends and breakthroughs.
• The therapeutic Dr. Clown program is introduced at the JGH, with specially trained performers providing patients with much-needed laughter.

2004

• Plans are unveiled for creation of the Segal Cancer Centre, providing a comprehensive and centralized focal point for new and existing clinical and research activities related to cancer. The Centre will be housed in new floors to be built atop Cummings Pavilion E (the west wing).
• For the first time in North America, orthopedic surgeons at the JGH perform Articular Surface Replacement surgery, a superior, new alternative to conventional forms of total hip replacement.
• During renovations to the autopsy room and morgue, the JGH creates a private mourning room, one of the few such facilities in a Canadian hospital, where relatives of the deceased can grieve in a quiet setting.

2005

• The JGH acquires six acres of adjoining land and buildings from Les Soeurs de Sainte-Croix, an order of nuns. Within months, a new hemodialysis unit becomes the first patient care centre to open in the newly designated Pavilion H, which will be used for hospital expansion in the coming years.
• During two days in August, the Weekend to End Breast Cancer becomes the largest single fundraising event in Quebec's history, as 3,011 people walk 60 kilometres through Montreal streets to raise $9.4 million for breast cancer research, treatment and prevention at the JGH's Segal Cancer Centre.
• A new PET/CT scanner goes into operation in the expanded and renovated facilities of the Division of Nuclear Medicine.
• Following a serious outbreak of C. difficile infections in many Montreal hospitals in 2004, infection rates drop sharply at the JGH after a strong and co-ordinated effort by medical staff in many departments.
• A program is launched to enable women to give birth at the JGH while under the care of a midwife.

2006

• After completion of a "fast-track" construction program, the Segal Cancer Centre goes into active use in January on four of the new floors atop Cummings Pavilion E, the hospital's west wing. (The four other new floors contain expanded facilities for other hospital departments.) The Centre, which devotes two floors to clinical activities and two to research labs, offers the most up-to-date cancer treatment, care, research, prevention and psychosocial support, with all services closely integrated under one roof. The Segal Cancer Centre officially opens with a reception in June, followed in August by a major press conference.
• The Cardiovascular Prevention Centre, the second patient service to be based in Pavilion H, expands its activities and moves into larger facilities on the pavilion's ground floor.
• In the second annual Weekend to End Breast Cancer, 2,556 participants raise $7.9 million for breast cancer treatment and research at the newly completed Segal Cancer Centre. 

2007

• Following an inspection in late 2006, the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation renews the JGH's accreditation for the maximum three-year term. In addition to praising the Cancer Care Team and Living Will program, the Council commends the hospital for its inter-disciplinary co-operation, its status as a referral centre and its strong focus on quality improvement, risk management and client security.
• In April, the main entrance is closed for 18 months for construction of an extensive, below-ground expansion of facilities for the Division of Radiation Oncology. Included in the project are renovations to the main entrance and lobby. During the renovations, the Cote-des-Neiges doors temporarily become the main entrance.
• After more than a year of establishing itself and growing into newly renovated quarters in Pavilion H, the Cardiovascular Prevention Centre officially opens in June to provide patients with counselling, diagnosis and support in the fight against cardiovascular disease.
• A $5 million HIV/AIDS Bio-containment Laboratory opens in June in a newly constructed, fourth-floor extension of the Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research. This Level 3 (ultra-secure) facility – the largest such lab since AIDS testing and research began at the JGH in the early 1980s – is one of only two Quebec centres authorized to perform clinical genotyping.
• Also in June, the fully modernized Health Science Library reopens after a year of renovation in Pavilion A. This bright, airy library features wider access to digitized books and journals, new meeting rooms with tele-conferencing technology, and more outlets for the use of laptops.
• In July, the JGH Hope & Cope Wellness Centre is launched in a renovated house just west of the JGH to provide recovering cancer patients and their families with a non-clinical setting for counselling, exercise and a wide range of classes on topics such as coping skills and nutrition.
• In the third annual Weekend to End Breast Cancer, 2,563 participants raise $7.9 million for breast cancer treatment and research at the Segal Cancer Centre.

2008

• At a press conference in February, the JGH announces its acquisition and implementation of the da Vinci surgical robot, the most advanced system of its kind in Quebec and one of only three in Canada. The robot enables doctors to perform minimally invasive surgery with extreme delicacy and precision.
• In early March, Henri Elbaz, the fourth Executive Director in the hospital's history, retires after a 32-year career at the JGH, including 16 years as Executive Director. On March 10, Dr. Hartley Stern, a colorectal surgeon who had served as Vice-President of Cancer Services at The Ottawa Hospital, becomes Executive Director.
• On Dr. Stern's initiative, the JGH renews its efforts to upgrade the quality of patient care and to improve levels of cleanliness, safety and hand hygiene.
• Digital systems are introduced for viewing and archiving X-rays and for storing patient records.
• A special Stroke Unit opens, offering patients the equivalent of an Intensive Care Unit specializing in strokes.

2009

• Year-long celebrations mark the Jewish General Hospital's 75th anniversary.
• Early in the year, patients begin receiving treatment in the newly expanded Division of Radiation Oncology, which includes two new linear accelerators and a new brachytherapy suite.
• In April, to provide greater access to health care, the Herzl Family Practice Centre opens a new type of walk-in clinic, open year-round without appointment.
• In June, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology moves to renovated facilities in Pavilion H, where a new Women's Care Centre opens.
• In June, the newly renovated main entrance opens, featuring a warm, welcoming atmosphere and easier access to Pavilion G and the Division of Radiation Oncology.
• The JGH becomes the first of Montreal's teaching hospitals to use nothing but digital intravenous pumps to ensure that patients get the right dose of medication at the proper rate.
• At the end of the year, the hospital's accreditation is renewed by Accreditation Canada, which praises the hospital for its "clear commitment to high-quality patient and family care." It also commends the JGH for its emphasis on the needs of patients and their families, the smooth functioning of inter-disciplinary teams, and the high priority given to research and teach.