ER Construction Moves Ahead
- February 2003
Minister of Health and Long Term Care The Honourable Tony Clement was in Niagara on January 28 to announce approval of $23.5 million in expansion and redevelopment construction projects, including the Emergency Departments for the Greater Niagara General and St. Catharines General sites of the Niagara Health System.
"This is great news for Niagara. The approval of these two emergency redevelopment projects means our health professionals will have the facilities and the resources they need to meet the needs of more than 100,000 people each year," said Paul Leon, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Niagara Health System. NHS emergency departments in Fort Erie, Port Colborne, Welland, Niagara Falls and St. Catharines treat nearly 170,000 combined through their emergency departments.
"Whether we like it or not, emergencies are part of real life," Minister Clement said. "What we can do as a government is to give the assurance that there will be a bed waiting for you when you get there. These announcements mean state-of-the-art facilities, increased access to a more modern facility, and decreased waiting times."
The project at the Greater Niagara General Site in Niagara Falls will see an add-on to the front of the hospital and the relocation and expansion of the existing Emergency Department at an approved cost of $18.5 million. Seventy percent of the funding for the project will come from the province with the remainder having to be raised locally. "Niagara Falls and the surrounding community has needed this for many years, and although we still have a lot of work to do before construction begins, we are excited to have received Ministry approval," said Karen Tribble, Vice President of Patient Services.
The capital project will be multi-phased, and includes new construction to the front of the hospital, currently housing Administration, Business Office, Finance and Quality/Education. The current Emergency Department, at 10,000 square feet, was built in 1973 to accommodate 20,000 visits/year. Current ER visits are at 51,583 per year.
The new Emergency Department will be 16,000 square feet, and will displace Day Surgery as well as the departments mentioned above. It will be a spacious and bright design, containing fast-track treatment rooms for non-critical patients, as well as specialty treatment rooms for a wide range of needs. It will accommodate 60,000 patients per year.
"This is not only about bricks and mortar, but also about a system that can deliver compassionate care," Minister Clement said. "Niagara is an area where people want to live, work and raise their families. We want Niagara to be successful."
Once construction is complete, the current Emergency Department will be renovated to become an Ambulatory Care Centre, and will also house Day Surgery. This 10,000 sq. ft. unit will contain Outpatient Clinics, including; Fracture Clinic, Ophthalmology Clinic and Medical Day Stay.
Once final drawings are developed, the Ministry will give final approval on the project, and it will be tendered by this Fall. Construction is expected to take 12 to 18 months.
At St. Catharines General, a $4.97 million capital project was given final approval for expansion of the Emergency Department and renovation of an inpatient unit for medical- surgical beds.
Under the Health Services Restructuring Commission's directions for Niagara -emergency service for St. Catharines, Thorold and surrounding communities will eventually be housed at this site, necessitating the addition of 10 fast-track treatment areas for non-urgent patients. The fast-track area will assist in handling the increased volumes (from 47,000 currently to 67,000 in the future) and will also help to reduce wait times, said Karen Mackenzie, site Emergency Department Manager.
A functional planning committee has been fine-tuning the plans for more than one year. "We have done this in conjunction with the master planning the NHS is doing system-wide," said Barry Lockhart, Vice President Patient Services.
The expansion will change the main front entrance of the hospital as well as vehicle access off Queenston Street. The foyer area of the main entrance will be enlarged.
To accommodate the increase in patients, the hospital will also be opening an additional 36 medical/surgical beds on the sixth floor, presently the Paediatric Unit. Paediatrics will move to the fourth floor. Construction will take about nine months to complete.