New hospital to shed services
Out-patient rehab, finance and extended care to be in separate building but no location set
Shane Magee
Northern News Services
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A new hospital, planned to be double the size of the existing Stanton Territorial Hospital, will not include an out-patient rehabilitation as first planned, an extended care department or a finance department.
Health and Social Services spokesperson Damien Healy stated in an e-mail that those three components won't be in the new, $350 million facility under construction by Boreal Health Partnership.
Out-patient rehab is currently provided in the hospital. When the project was first envisioned as a renovation of the existing facility, a document stated it would include an out-patient rehab centre covering about 1,281 square metres.
Rehabilitation services, according to the health department, is the connection of people with disabilities with professionals to help them improve their mobility, communication, activities, work, leisure, spiritual and emotional concerns.
And now extended care, the finance department and some administrative functions will also be in a separate building, although no final location has been selected, Healy confirmed.
Beginning before the election, Yellowknifer asked whether rehabilitation services would be included in the new facility and what other departments might not be included.
Over several weeks, Yellowknifer repeatedly asked for an interview with someone within the territorial government regarding the changes and to get more details about a new building separate from the hospital but only brief e-mailed responses were provided.
The initial e-mailed response days after the Nov. 23 vote indicates the GNWT plans some type of other new facility containing at least out-patient rehabilitation.
The plans had not previously been known and no price was provided, although Healy stated the cost is included in the price tag for the new hospital.
"The new Stanton Hospital is currently programmed to provide rehabilitation services to inpatients," Healy wrote in an e-mail. "Outpatient Rehabilitation Services will be provided in a building that is separate from the new hospital. It was determined during the planning work that it is not critical for out-patient rehab be delivered in an acute care hospital.
"The new location (which is not yet decided upon) will include a program area that is significantly larger than current," he wrote.
The existing building contains a secure 12-bed extended care unit "that offers services to adults requiring long term residential, respite and palliative care in a home-like environment," the Health and Social Services website states.
The department's capital spending plan shows an 18-bed extend care facility is expected to be constructed in 2018-2019 but doesn't provide a price.
The new hospital will have 100 beds - a 20 bed increase over what exists now. The structure will be more than 26,000 square metres compared to the 13,300 square metres in the current building. Construction is expected to be finished in 2018.
