Hospital renovations update

Brady Grove , Times Reporter

Upgrades to numerous labs and care facilities are continuing at the Strathmore Hospital in order to increase communication between staff and offer better care to patients.
As part of the changes a newer, more private triage has been completed as well as a larger pharmacy. The phlebotomy lab was moved to be closer to the other labs in the hospital with the hopes of unifying lab work.
In an e-mail to the Strathmore Times from Lisa Sutherland, senior communications advisor with Alberta Health Services, she mentioned other projects and their time lines: refurbishing the old long-term care wing is nearing completion; hospital lobby ceiling and roof improvements are under way; additional lab construction to start mid-March with expected completion in summer 2017; and renovations to the Emergency Department due to start in Fall 2017.
The new pharmacy has been operating for a couple of weeks already and staff remain optimistic that they will be able to provide a smoother more organized work flow.
“It’s just bigger, they provide the same service, a better work environment, (and it’s) more organized,” said Ann Mcnair-Gariepy, the site manager for emergent and homecare, RN. “Now the meds are all organized in a bigger space.”
Construction of the triage – a medical room for nurses to assess the injuries of patients – started on Feb. 20 and is now complete. According to Mcnair-Gariepy the new unit is functioning well offering more privacy to patients.
Moving the Phlebotomy lab closer to the other labs was also on the agenda for renovations. The Phlebotomy lab is used to extract and test blood samples. The unit opened on March 13.
“It just brings all of the lab staff together and into one spot,” said Mcnair-Gariepy. “They can communicate better with the labs.”
The Strathmore Hospital is the second busiest rural health unit in Alberta serving 30,000 patients each year. Local officials had been waiting nearly 30 years for hospital renovation. The provincial government previously invested $2.8 million into the local health care complex.