Ponoka hospital road closure first step in $15.3-million expansion

Ponoka Hospital and Health Care Centre. (Source: Lasting Impressions)

A hospital in Ponoka, Alta. has closed a road for construction, marking the start of a projected three-year, $15.3-million expansion and upgrade to the facility.

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Ponoka Hospital and Care Centre closed off 59 Street at 59 Avenue last week for what a news release said should be two to three weeks as part of an ongoing construction project.

While pedestrians and motorists are advised to steer clear of the road, Alberta Health Services (AHS) said it won’t disrupt access to the hospital itself.

Construction crews are connecting underground water utilities in preparation for an expansion to the hospital’s surgical department.

Funded by the Alberta government, the hospital is also building an addition onto the northwest corner of the hospital. This will become the home to a “modernized” medical device reprocessing department.

AHS said the project comes at a time when their “current focus is on reducing emergency department wait times, improving EMS response times, increasing access to surgeries and improving patient flow.”

Communications director Brendan Procé told CTV News Edmonton that the work done at Ponoka will give residents “improved access to surgical services.”

Procé confirmed the work should be finished in 2028.