New Saskatchewan Hospital coming closer to completion

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He said everything is on time and on budget.

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“We will be ready to turn it over to the province in June of next year, no problem,” he added. 

People taking part in the tour were able to see the new gym, the cafeteria, the new entrance plans, as well as the new private bedrooms that are close to completion.

Currently the hospital shares a gym with the youth detention centre so having a space for patients to exercise on a regular basis was a key part of the design.

“Now they have their very own space,” Worthing said, adding there will also be a weight room and a cardio area, and basketball nets. “There are so many activities for the patients to be engaging in on a daily basis it’s going to be a really good experience for them while they are here.”

The entrance to the new hospital will have plenty of natural light and features an open space design.

There is also a patient alcove being completed that will offer patients a place to sit where there are also lots of windows and natural light to enjoy.

”One of the largest transformational changes the patients are going to experience once they move into the facility next year is going to be with a private room they get to live in by themselves,” Worthing said. The facility includes 284 patient beds in total.

“Right now, they are double-, triple-, quadruple-bunked, or sometimes more in the existing facility. Now they are going to be coming here and they have their very own space; they will share a bathroom with just one other person,” he added.  

For the patients, “the way they live today and the way they are going to live tomorrow, it is an honour to be part of the experience,” Worthing said.

Many dignitaries and project organizers gave the public, staff, patients and stakeholders an update on the project. 

Director of Saskatchewan Hospital North Battleford Linda Shynkaruk said it was “emotionally overwhelming” for her to see the build so close to completion.

”It is reality coming to the forefront for us after years of planning and hard work, and effort,” she said. “It is the vision of patients, of staff and families and the community. It has been a combined team effort.” 

Shynkaruk said when the project started, patients completed surveys saying what they wanted in a new hospital. She said patients wanted more privacy and more bathrooms to start. Currently residents share one bathroom with two stalls each for men and women with 24 other people since there are 24 beds per unit.

Light and temperature control were also on the list of patient must-haves. 

“Those were the four main things they wanted. And you know what, we’re giving them all of it,” Shynkaruk said.

She added the patients “are so excited” with what they have seen so far of the new project.

“They can’t wait to get in here,” Shynkaruk said. ”There [are] going to be so many new things for them to do. There is lots of anticipation and lots of excitement.” 

The estimated construction cost of the project is roughly $222 million. The province expects to cover the full anticipated cost, including long-term maintenance fees for estimated total cost of $407 million. Prairie North Health Region’s New Beginnings campaign is to raise $8 million for equipment and furnishings for the building.

The new psychiatric hospital for men and women will replace the former SHNB that opened in 1914.  

angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsNOW