Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences (Ontario Shores) is a public hospital located in Whitby, Ontario, Canada, providing a range of specialized assessment and treatment services to those living with complex and serious mental illness. Interprofessional teams provide care through safe and evidence-based approaches where successful outcomes are achieved using best clinical practices and the latest advances in research. Patients benefit from a recovery-oriented environment of care built on compassion, inspiration and hope. In addition, through a variety of initiatives and partnerships, Ontario Shores works to raise awareness of mental illness, educate healthcare practitioners and train the next generation of mental health care specialists. Employing almost 1,200 staff, Ontario Shores offers specialized recovery-focused interprofessional programs and services designed to provide successful treatment as interprofessional teams work with patients and families throughout their journey of recovery. Assessment and crisis services are provided, as well as consultation and education. Ontario Shores is accredited by Accreditation Canada and operates with the support of the Central East Local Health Integration Network (Central East LHIN) and the Ministry of Health. The organization is regulated by the Public Hospitals Act, the Mental Health Act, and other provincial and federal legislation. History In 1911, the architect, James Govan, working with a team of advisory psychiatrists, physicians and government officials, presented his design for the Whitby Hospital. Govan worked to ensure the design would be unlike that of past hospitals (dark and damp, with barred windows). The design called for sixteen cottages where patients would live while receiving treatment. In addition, each cottage was constructed in such a manner as to allow natural sunlight through the windows. Each cottage could hold up to 70 patients. The patients could move freely without having to travel through tunnels. One aspect of the new mental health facility was the physical site, situated east of Toronto. Purchased by the Provincial Government early in 1912, the grounds originally consisted of of treed farmland that sloped gently to Lake Ontario. The hospital offered patients fresh air, sunshine, space to walk and an opportunity to heal. In 1914, war broke out, and while construction on the hospital continued, progress slowed. Over the next two years, however, as more and more buildings were completed, doctors transferred psychiatric patients from Toronto facilities. By February 1917, large numbers of soldiers were returning from overseas. Many were badly wounded and needed intense, long-term treatment. Since general hospitals were