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<\/p>\nWork on the Cariboo Memorial Hospital\u2019s (CMH) new tower is shifting indoors now that construction of the exterior nears completion.<\/p>\n
\u201cSteady progress is being made,\u201d said Karen Cooper, executive director of clinical operations for Interior Health\u2019s (IH) Thompson Cariboo Rural region, in an interview with the Tribune.<\/p>\n
Cooper said that the hospital redevelopment design-builder \u2014 Graham Construction \u2014 has extended the completion date for the first phase of the project by a couple months, pushing the opening date for the new tower from late 2026 to early 2027. However, their contract allows for only one extension, so Cooper expects the project will otherwise go ahead as scheduled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all excited to be in the new space\u2026but we still provide high quality care,\u201d Cooper said when asked how the delay might impact access to care. \u201cIt will be business as usual until then.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Al Richmond, chair of the Cariboo Chilcotin Regional Hospital District (CCRHD), commended the contractors for their work, noting they did a great job navigating the project through the Covid-19 pandemic which itself presented delays.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate, but it\u2019s not a significant delay,\u201d Richmond said of the 59-day push for the completion of the project\u2019s first phase.<\/p>\n
Richmond had a tour of the hospital\u2019s new tower, which he said from the outside is looking substantially complete, but there remains much to be done inside.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really nice facility,\u201d Richmond said, calling it a \u201cmassive build\u201d for Williams Lake.<\/p>\n
Moving into the new tower<\/p>\n
In the following months, crews will be working on finishing touches to the new tower such as installing floors, walls and ceilings as well as working on electrical, heating and ventilation systems. Crews are also working on linking the existing hospital with the new tower.<\/p>\n
Once phase one of the project is complete, services will move to the new tower where the maternity unit will see one additional bed. Eight additional beds will also open in the new medical\/surgical inpatient unit, bringing the total to 28. Another eight inpatient beds are expected to become operational at a future date.<\/p>\n
On the tower\u2019s main level, where the emergency department (ED) will move to and will go from 11 to 23 bays as well as two trauma treatment bays, two specialized procedure rooms, an ambulance carport and a separate public entrance.<\/p>\n
A big change is that care will now be provided in separate rooms in the ED.<\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of curtains around our beds it will be separate rooms\u2026just really a much nicer experience for our patients,\u201d Cooper said.<\/p>\n
CMH\u2019s pharmacy department will also be moving to the new tower.<\/p>\n
Phase 2 expected to be complete in 2029<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Graham Construction will begin work on the existing hospital building in early 2027, where the second floor will house a new Mental Health and Substance Use unit with eight beds.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey will no longer have to travel to Kamloops,\u201d Cooper said, explaining the unit would serve mainly patients in acute mental health crisis but will also include withdrawal treatment.<\/p>\n
The current ED will become a space for ambulatory care for minor procedures where patients go for the day rather than get admitted to the hospital.<\/p>\n
Phase two of the project will also see an academic space built on the third floor of the existing building for the University of British Columbia\u2019s Faculty of Medicine.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will be a place to call their own,\u201d Cooper said about the space where students on a practicum can learn. \u201cWe hope that creates a bit of a pipeline of future providers.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project, which currently remains on budget, is expected to be complete in 2029 and will include an interfaith space for traditional cultural and healing practices, smudging in patient rooms and 71 new parking stalls.<\/p>\n
IH said it is collaborating with local nations to ensure local Indigenous culture is reflected in the hospital\u2019s new design, such as through a sculpture at the hospital entrance, language translations on exterior and parking signage and the use of native plant themes throughout the hospital\u2019s interior design.<\/p>\n
Staffing and wait times<\/p>\n
All this work has people such as city Coun. Sheila Boehm wondering how IH will staff expanding services in Williams Lake, a question she voiced during an Oct. 21 regular council meeting discussion about whether treatment facilities could help address homelessness.<\/p>\n