It was standing room only as hundreds of concerned residents packed into a church in Grimsby to voice their concerns about the fate of West Lincoln Memorial Hospital.
Doctors, nurses, midwives, hospital staff, and even the former Chief of Staff at the hospital gathered with residents at Trinity United Church last night to talk about the possibility of essential services being moved out of the local building.
Former Chief of Staff Dr.Gary Benson resigned after Hamilton Health Sciences announced a plan to move some surgical services out of Grimsby.
He says it will be a fatal blow to the hospital.
Representatives from Hamilton Health Sciences tell CKTB the move is temporary and reassures the community there are no plans to close emergency services or the hospital in general.
They think the 8.5 million dollar renovation will take around 27 months.
Residents at last night's meeting say if the services are moved out of West Lincoln Memorial Hospital, they will never return.
The Hamilton Health Sciences Board will be voting on the plan at it's meeting in December.
Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff says saving and rebuilding the hospital is his number one priority.