Will 2011 be the year that capital dollars are invested in St. Paul’s Hospital?
2011 undoubtedly will be an eventful year for the on going process of the redevelopment of St. Paul’s Hospital.
In the fall of 2010 Providence Health Care (PHC) updated the Downtown community about their plans for redevelopment of St. Paul’s Hospital. A “concept plan” is being work on now by PHC and should be ready for community input eminently. This concept plan will be a good opportunity for the community stakeholders of St. Paul’s Hospital to be better educated about the future of the hospital and have input on the process.
With leadership races underway for both the BC NDP and BC Liberal parties now is an advantageous time to inquire what all the leadership hopefuls’ positions are on providing capital dollars to improve St. Paul’s Hospital.
The Save St. Paul’s Coalition will be developing a survey for the leadership candidates in the next weeks to explore which candidates are going to have the best plan for the renewal of the hospital.
Both Kevin Falcon and George Abbott are former Health Minister and know the that St. Paul’s Hospital is in urgent need of capital dollars for renewal. I have not heard Christy Clark on how much she would allocated for the a capital project on the Burrard Street site and I will be keen to know where she stands on this important issue for the province.
In the weeks ahead as PHC’s concept plan for the development of the hospital emerges it will be interesting to see what is in the plan and how receptive PHC is to suggestions and feedback from community members and community organizations.
Given the hyper scrutiny that development is being given in the city right now, it will be interesting to see how this will affect plans to redevelop the hospital. Will concerns over heights of a renewed hospital make the potential project problematic for all concerned?
This week on Wednesday there is another in the series of free community lectures on the great work that goes on at St. Paul’s Hospitals:
OWN YOUR HEALTH ST. PAUL’S HOSPITAL COMMUNITY FORUMS
Join medical experts from Providence Health Care for monthly community forums at St. Paul’s Hospital. Each month features a different health topic with time to pose questions to the experts. The forums are free and open to the public and staff
Wednesday January 19, 2011
7:00 – 9:00 pm
Lecture Theatre Level 1, Providence Bldg.
Let’s Talk About: High Blood Pressure
Hypertension 101: Treating the Patient, Not the Pressure
Presented by:
Dr. Jake Onrot
Clinical Professor, Department of Medicine
Division of General Internal Medicine
Providence Health Care
University of British Columbia
and
Dr. Nadia Khan
Associate Professor, Department of Medicine
Division of General Internal Medicine
Providence Health Care
University of British Columbia
Intended for patients (and their family members), who have been affected by hypertension, those who are at risk and those who just want to know more about this medical condition. The presentations will focus on the major risk factors for Hypertension, how to reduce this risk and how to help patients feel better and live more functional and healthier lives. The presentations will also highlight the latest in treatment and the ongoing research at St. Paul’s Hospital.