New tower to open at Royal Columbian Hospital

One of B.C.’s busiest hospitals is about to open the doors on a new tower.

The long-awaited new Jim Pattison Acute Care Tower at Royal Columbian Hospital will soon be open to patients.

But it comes as critics prepare to rally against the delayed expansion of another hospital.

On Friday, a major milestone, as officials announced RCH’s new 388-bed tower will open May 31, saying it will bring quicker access to specialized life-saving treatment.

“The new tower will expand access to advanced specialized care for people not just in the Lower Mainland but across the region and throughout the province,” said Minister of Infrastructure Bowinn Ma.

She said the hospital is “one of a kind,” providing specialized care that is unavailable anywhere else in the province.

“With this new tower, Royal Columbian will be the only hospital in B.C. with trauma, cardiac care, neurosurgery, high risk obstetrics, neonatal intensive care and acute mental health care all in one site,” Ma explained.

The tower will include expanded inpatient units, a cardiac ICU and a new emergency department, which Fraser Health says will improve access to wraparound comprehensive care and enhanced patient flow. Fraser Health also said that on-site satellite medical imaging will save people valuable time with a dedicated CT scanner as well as X-ray and ultrasound rooms.

“What today’s announcement demonstrates is that our government’s continued investments in health-care infrastructure projects across the province, continue,” said Ma.

But the good news for one hospital comes just days before a planned rally over delays in construction at another hospital.

“There has been a large public outcry on the cancellation of phase two of the Burnaby Hospital,” said Misty Van Popta, the MLA for Langley – Walnut Grove and infrastructure critic for the B.C. Conservatives.

“It’s at a time when half of the projects that have been cancelled have been in Fraser Health.”

Earlier this year, the province cancelled the construction contract for the Burnaby Hospital expansion and put seven long-term care home projects on hold.

“When you cancel contracts, it signals to the public these projects are now being pulled off-line and there’s no reassurance of when they’re starting up and it’s just unacceptable for the residents of Burnaby,” VanPopta said.

The Ministry of Infrastructure said in a statement to CTV News that the timelines have been “adjusted” as it works to make the projects more financially sustainable.

“There are some projects that most recent cost estimates have come back with cost escalations that are unacceptable to us,” said Ma.

She said that since 2017, the NDP government has opened or upgraded 15 hospital and health-care facilities and 16 long-term care homes.

At RCH, Phase 3 of the tower is expected to open in the fall. The final phase will include upgrades to the existing health-care centre and Columbia Tower.

The combined cost of Phases 2 and 3 is estimated at nearly $2 billion.

Van Popta said that while it’s always good when new health-care services open, the tower at RCH was “$359 million over budget and three years behind schedule.”

Van Popta will be at the rally for Burnaby Hospital on Sunday at Avondale Park in Burnaby.