Ceremonies were held Jan. 24 to mark the opening of the new Ambulatory Care Unit at Sechelt/shíshálh Hospital, completing a $44.3-million expansion project that’s been underway for nearly a decade.
The biggest part of the expansion was the new tower, which houses the ER and patient rooms.
The new Ambulatory Care Centre is in the renovated section of the older building.
“Sechelt Hospital’s new Ambulatory Care Unit will not only enhance the patient experience thanks to a larger and brighter space, it will improve our delivery of patient care thanks to the addition of dedicated rooms for services such as chemotherapy, hemodialysis, medical daycare and visiting specialists,” said Karin Olson, Vancouver Coastal Health’s (VCH) chief operating officer for the Coastal Community of Care.
According to VCH, there were 11,177 visits to the ambulatory care clinic in the 2016-17 fiscal year, but many other patients had to go off-Coast. VCH said with the new unit up and running, more of those patients can be treated locally.
Lauren Tindall, VCH director for the Sunshine Coast, said the health authority doesn’t have hard statistics on the number of patients currently going off-Coast for ambulatory care services. She added, however, that specialist consultations, chemotherapy and hemodialysis are among the most common reasons for patients to travel to Vancouver.
Local taxpayers made a significant contribution to the project – $15.9 million through the Sunshine Coast Regional Hospital District. The Sechelt Hospital Foundation has also donated $1.15 million and the Sunshine Coast Healthcare Auxiliary has contributed $1 million.
“The community is owed a huge thank you for believing that the best medicine is local, and investing their money here at home,” said Dave Hawkins, chair of the Sechelt Hospital Foundation.
Regional Hospital District Chair Frank Mauro said completion of the Ambulatory Care Unit will mean “a level of care that’s unprecedented in a community of this size. We need to be proud of this accomplishment.”
Despite the expansion, the Sunshine Coast’s Division of Family Practice, the group representing local doctors, and community members have raised concerns about overcrowding and a shortage of acute care beds. The hospital currently has 50 in-patient beds.
Tindall said with the renovation done there is space to add beds in the future.
“The intention is that we will be exploring that soon,” she said.
She also said having more and better ambulatory care options will take pressure off both the ER, which saw 15,610 visits in 2016-17, and the acute care unit.
