New $28-million emergency room coming to a Metro Vancouver hospital

Jan 19 2019, 8:25 am

A hospital that directly serves the Tri-Cities area of Metro Vancouver will be receiving a new $28-million emergency room (ER) department.

Construction began today on the new ER for Port Moody’s Eagle Ridge Hospital, with $23 million coming from the provincial government through Fraser Health Authority (FHA) and another $5 million from the Eagle Ridge Hospital Foundation.

This project will renew and expand the ER, increasing the number of patient treatment spaces from 19 to 39. There will also be four new isolation rooms to support improved infection-control measures and two new trauma resuscitation bays.

Walk-in patients and ambulances will have separate entrances, and an area will be designated for chemical decontamination.

The new ER is anticipated to be ready for use in late-2020.

“We know that as the Tri-Cities continue to grow and change, so will the demand for emergency care, which is why we are expanding the emergency department at Eagle Ridge Hospital as one of several expansions we are making across our region,” said Victoria Lee, President and CEO of FHA, in a statement.

“By improving and streamlining the care we deliver, we can ensure our emergency department is there for patients when they need it, and that our physicians and staff can build upon the exceptional care they already deliver in a new facility that will benefit the community now and for many years to come.”

The 1984-built Eagle Ridge Hospital, located a short walking distance from the Millennium Line’s new Inlet Centre Station, is classified as a community hospital.

With the population of the Tri-Cities slated to grow from about 253,000 in 2019 to 278,000  by 2024, the expansion will help meet growing demand for healthcare services.

Last year, FHA withdrew a plan to sell under-utilized parcels of the 25-acre hospital site for condominium tower redevelopments, with proceeds funding hospital improvements. The plan was cancelled due to opposition from the municipality.

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