LOOK DIFFERENTLY AT MENTAL HEALTH
In his role as head of Royal Columbian Hospital’ s Psychiatry Department, Dr. Anson Koo is part of the team preparing for a new 75-bed Mental Health and Substance Use Wellness Centre. Construction is scheduled to begin this year, and the new centre will replace the aging 30-bed Sherbrooke Centre as part of a larger redevelopment of the hospital.
Q:You’ve described redevelopment as a game changer. Why?
Dr. Koo: This expansion of our program will enable us to deliver a much more comprehensive range of mental health services. It will allow people anywhere in our health authority to access psychiatric care faster than they currently are able to. It’s going to allow us to bring our patients from emergency departments into our inpatient units in a much more timely and effective way, and then transition them more quickly to effective outpatient care. Another reason this is a game changer is now for the first time we will have a purpose-built mental health facility that has as its core guiding principle the design and creation of a therapeutic environment for our patients.
Q:What does a therapeutic environment look like?
Dr. Koo: Our new building will have natural light radiating throughout the units. It’s going to have access to the outdoors for all patients. It will provide private spaces where confidential discussions can occur. There is abundant literature and research showing the care environment has a profound impact on people’s ability to heal. The environment and qualities of the space in which we deliver care are absolutely key to the work we do.
Q:Also for the first time in Fraser Health, seniors will have their own dedicated unit for mental health care. What is the purpose of that unit?
Dr. Koo: We realize our seniors have special requirements. Many of them are more frail physically. Many of them are at higher risk of falls and hip fractures, and they have very unique psychological and physical rehabilitation requirements. We need to create an environment that reduces risks and enhances care for our seniors. This unit will be the first of its kind in Fraser Health, and I think we are going to see some real advances in the care of our seniors.
Q:Where do research and education fit into these plans?
Dr. Koo: We will have a dedicated mental health psychiatry research and academic unit as part of our new building. Fraser Health has a psychiatry residency program fully affiliated with UBC in which we are training future psychiatrists for our health region. With the new mental health academic centre, the Royal Columbi- an will be the academic hub for mental health, supporting mental health education and research throughout our health authority. This will also offer the opportunity for researchers and clinicians to use the centre as a base to conduct clinical research and look deeply at issues of mental illness, treatment and recovery in all of our diverse populations.
Royal Columbian Hospital Foundation is seeking your support to transform mental health and substance use care at Royal Columbian Hospital. The province has approved Fraser Health’s plans for a new facility that will offer four times as much space and two and a half times as many psychiatric beds. The Foundation is working with donors to raise $9.1 million towards the total budget of $258.9 million for this first phase of hospital redevelopment. Donate by phoning 604.520.4438 or at rchfoundation.com/mentalhealth.
We are going to see some real advances in the care of our seniors.