The province plans to build a new urgent care centre in Lethbridge as part of a major expansion of Alberta’s urgent care network, but no new facility was announced for Crowsnest Pass.
Alberta’s government announced Nov. 9 that it will spend $39 million over three years on planning and land acquisition for nine centres. The other proposed locations are west and south Edmonton, the Stony Plain and Spruce Grove area, east Calgary, Medicine Hat and Cypress County, Cold Lake, Fort McMurray and Sylvan Lake.
Lethbridge would be the closest of the proposed centres to Crowsnest Pass. The province has not identified a specific site, opening date or construction budget for the Lethbridge facility.
Urgent care centres provide walk-in treatment for unexpected medical problems that require attention the same day but are not considered life-threatening. Examples discussed during the announcement included suspected broken bones, deep cuts and illnesses that cannot wait for a regular family doctor appointment.
Alberta currently has six urgent care centres. The nine additions would bring the total to 15, representing a 150 per cent increase in the number of facilities.
The province estimates each centre could treat between 30,000 and 33,000 patients annually. Together, the nine proposed facilities are expected to divert as many as 300,000 visits from hospital emergency departments each year.
Hospital and Surgical Health Services Minister Adriana LaGrange said Alberta emergency departments receive more than two million visits annually, with more than one-third involving conditions that could potentially be treated at an urgent care centre.
The projected diversion of 300,000 patients represents about 15 per cent of the annual emergency visits cited during the news conference.
The $39 million announced by the province is for planning and purchasing land. It does not include the full cost of constructing, equipping, staffing or operating the nine facilities.
During the media question period, LaGrange said the centres could take approximately three years to complete once construction begins. Before that can happen, the province must acquire land, complete business cases and determine what programs will be offered at each location.
When asked whether the entire process could take six or seven years, LaGrange did not provide a firm completion date.
“It all depends on how quickly we can acquire land and get all the planning done and then put shovels in the ground,” she said.
LaGrange said some communities could move more quickly than others and expressed hope that construction could begin on at least some of the facilities within the next year.
“I would love to see all of them going within the next year or so,” she said.
No staffing targets were announced. LaGrange said the province will not know how many employees each centre requires until its programming has been developed. Staffing plans are expected to proceed alongside facility planning.
Acute Care Alberta interim CEO Dr. Sayeh Zielke said locations were selected by examining population growth, gaps in existing services and patient demand.
Zielke said urgent care centres are intended to provide another option between a family doctor and a hospital emergency department, while allowing emergency staff to concentrate on heart attacks, strokes, serious injuries and other life-threatening conditions.
For Crowsnest Pass residents, the Crowsnest Pass Health Centre in Blairmore continues to operate a 24-hour emergency department. The facility also provides X-ray, laboratory, surgical, dialysis and other hospital services.
Alberta Health Services advises anyone facing a medical emergency to call 911 or attend the nearest emergency department. Residents uncertain about the level of care they require can call Health Link at 811 to speak with a registered nurse at any time.