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Mackenzie Health
Mackenzie Health
Geography
Location	Richmond Hill, York Region, Ontario, Canada
Organization
Care system	Medicare
Type	Community
Services
Emergency department	Yes
History
Opened	1963
Links
Website	https://www.mackenziehealth.ca/

Mackenzie Health is a hospital corporation based in Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada that provides health care services in southern York Region. It operates two hospitals - Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital and Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital.

It also operates urgent care centres in Richmond Hill and Vaughan,^[1] and a mental health facility in Barrie.^[2]

Facilities

Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital, in Richmond Hill (opened as York Central Hospital in 1963)
Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital, in Vaughan (opened in 2021)
Oak Ridges Medical Centre, in Oak Ridges (northern Richmond Hill)
Urgent Care Centre, in Vaughan (opened in 2006)^[3]
Centre for Behavioural Health in Barrie

Management

In November 2015 Mackenzie Health signed an 18-year managed equipment services contract with Philips, for room design, diagnostics, alarm management, predictive analytics, and other medical technology services for Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital and Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital.^[4]

Funding

The Mackenzie Health Foundation is the fundraising foundation for Mackenzie Health, responsible for obtaining donations from private donors.^[5] Established in 1977, it is responsible for acquiring the local funding for capital projects, for example the 10% of construction costs for the Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital, as well as all funding for other capital projects and ancillary operational costs. Capital projects funded include the acquisition of medical and diagnostic equipment, for example a magnetic resonance imaging scanner.^[6]

Donors can specify their donation to be allocated to a specific purpose.^[5]

The Mackenzie Health Volunteer Association is a community fundraising association that raises funds via community events, for example its annual dance held since 1993.^[6] The dance has raised over $500,000 since its inception, and has partially funded the acquisition of surgical equipment and a digital mammography unit, and the establishment of the Intensive Care Unit and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.^[6]

Controversy

2016 sexual assault allegations

In 2016, Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital faced criticism over its handling of sexual assault allegations from at least five elderly patients who reported being assaulted by an employee. The hospital initially issued a statement and cited patient privacy concerns^[7] for not informing law enforcement, prompting Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins to announce a review.^[8]

In 2017, questions emerged regarding the hospital's role in the York Regional Police investigation. Police documents suggested that certain hospital managers may not have fully cooperated, which, according to some police, could have been an effort to avoid civil litigation. This was reported to have potentially affected the investigation’s progress.^[9]

In response to the criticism, the hospital committed to immediately reporting all allegations of criminal behavior to law enforcement, ensuring prompt action and transparency moving forward. Mackenzie Health emphasized its dedication to patient safety and addressing gaps in its response processes. These policy changes were part of Mackenzie Health’s effort to rebuild trust and prevent similar incidents in the future.^[10]

Lawsuit following infant's death

In December 2014, the parents of eight-day-old Kieran Bonnell alleged that medical negligence at Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital contributed to his death from an E. coli infection. They claimed that a critical blood test result indicating the infection was received by the hospital but not acted upon, leading to delayed treatment. This prompted the parents to file a $900,000 lawsuit. According to media reports, Mackenzie Health apologized to the family, acknowledging an internal systems failure in reporting critical lab results for discharged patients. The hospital stated it had implemented process improvements, including a logbook for abnormal lab results, to prevent similar incidents.^[11]

Controversy over Muzzo family name on hospital wing

In 2017, Mackenzie Health received a $15 million donation from the De Gasperis and Muzzo families, leading to the naming of the west wing of the Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital as the "De Gasperis-Muzzo Tower."^[12] The naming sparked controversy due to Marco Muzzo's 2015 conviction for impaired driving, which resulted in the deaths of three children and their grandfather.^[13] Public criticism grew after the 2022 death of Edward Lake, the father of the deceased children, and a petition with over 3,000 signatures called for the Muzzo name’s removal. Mackenzie Health declined to rename the wing, citing the family's philanthropic contributions, which significantly supported the hospital's development.^[14]

2023 Gaza war

In October 2023, Mackenzie Health temporarily suspended nephrologist Dr. Ben Thomson following a social media post he described as an effort to address perceived misinformation and counter dehumanizing language toward Palestinians.^[15]^[16] After posting, Thomson reportedly faced online threats, and his personal address was shared.^[15] On October 13, Mackenzie Health issued a statement emphasizing its stance against hate, violence, human rights violations, and terrorism, asserting that recent social media posts by its staff did not reflect the hospital’s values.^[16] The hospital later clarified that Thomson’s suspension was an "unprecedented, temporary measure" related to safety threats against him and not the content of his views.^[16] Following discussions with York Regional Police and security experts, Thomson was reinstated after 10 days and later filed a $1.5 million lawsuit against Mackenzie Health, alleging defamation and procedural mishandling.^[17]

Separately, other physicians at Mackenzie Health made controversial social media posts without any known disciplinary action. On December 3, 2023, Dr. Hy Dwosh, a critical care physician, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that “the war will end the moment Palestinians start loving their own children more than they hate the Jews.”^[18] He also commented on November 29, 2023, dismissing reports of a child released by Israel as “Fake!! His arms were fine in the video of him leaving the Israeli Prison into the Red Cross bus,” despite Reuters confirming the injury. On November 9, 2023, Dr. Penny Turner, a nephrologist, liked a tweet claiming the primary driver of antisemitism in the West is the “importing of millions of people from the Muslim world.” Additionally, in October 2024, emergency physician Dr. David Carr responded to a Toronto Star columnist on X, implying a threat to withhold medical treatment due to the columnist’s views on a conflict between Israeli soccer fans and pro-Palestinian protesters.^[18] Mackenzie Health has not publicly commented or reported any actions related to these statements.