Haida Gwaii hospital a critical step for community’s health
When the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visit northern B.C. Friday, one of their main stops will be at the newly constructed Haida Gwaii Hospital and Health Centre in Queen Charlotte.
There they will learn why the hospital, expected to open within the next two months, will be so critical to the 4,500 residents of Haida Gwaii. In the past, many community members have had to leave their families and go off the island to obtain services they need, from giving birth to living in extended care homes for seniors.
“We’re very pleased and excited to be part of the royal visit. It’s extremely exciting for the community to talk about our health services,” Northern Health Authority president and CEO Cathy Ulrich said.
She said the duke and duchess will meet with an 89-year-old resident who will move into one of the eight rooms for island seniors needing residential care. The couple will also meet two young families who will share their experiences of having their babies off the island and on.
Although the hospital isn’t yet open, the royal couple will be able to tour the facility and unveil a plaque celebrating the completion of construction.
Ulrich said that in the past, most births have happened off the island, but in the past few years Northern Health has hired two midwives who have, along with a physician, made a “significant difference.” She said half of the community’s births now take place on the island and she expects that number will grow when the hospital opens.
“You can imagine the old hospital, built in 1955, was not purposebuilt for births. We will have a new labour and delivery room and postpartum area,” she said.
Ulrich said the old hospital had eight extended-care rooms, but seniors were cramped together in shared rooms and had no meeting place within the hospital to visit with family. In the new hospital, seniors will have their own rooms with a “beautiful gathering space overlooking the ocean” to enjoy, she said. Ulrich said there will also be dedicated space for activities.
“It’s really important for people who live on the island for their elderly parents to stay close by. You can imagine if your parent had to leave (to go to an extended care home). It limits your interactions with your parents,” she said.
The new hospital will also have eight acute-care beds and an emergency department, and will offer mental health care, cancer screening and access to primary care. It will also have palliative care service and a fully equipped cancer care room.
“I think (the duke and duchess will) be impressed with the facility,” Ulrich said, “and even more impressed with the service providers, who are passionate about their work, and the people of the community, who are so grateful.”