Vancouver’s St. Paul’s Hospital will feature a new emergency room model that aims to change the patient experience when it opens next year. Dr. Spencer Heffernan, an emergency physician at St. Paul’s Hospital, said the new facility will offer more than 70 treatment spaces – most of which will have a glass sliding door. “I think in this new space, they’re going to have much more privacy, sound isolation and a quieter environment,” he said. “I think it will be a more dignified experience for our patients.” It’s an experience that’s important for patient Bonnie Qualm. Fifteen years later, Qualm’s experience at the ER still weighs on her. While seeking treatment for a fistula, Qualm recalled lying on a gurney separated by curtains with people on each side, able to hear the conversations she was having with doctors. “It was mortifying,” she said. “It was so upsetting and embarrassing to me that to this day, when I think about it, it kind of triggers me.” Qualm said the reimagined ER is a welcome change. “None of us should have to kind of have that duality of being ill and being exposed,” she said. According to Heffernan, who is also a co-lead for redevelopment of the ER, the department will be split into four different zones, which will each function as its own emergency department. One zone will be dedicated to mental health and substance use care, and patients will have a continuous care team. Heffernan believes this streamlined approach will be more efficient. “We’re optimistic that this new model will help us to keep up with the demands of the future and keep wait times as low as possible, while still being able to deliver the best care,” he said. Sheila Biggers, the president and CEO of the St Paul’s Foundation, said the organization has already raised more than $170 million for capital costs, but is looking to come up with $40 million more. “What we are hoping the community sees, is that when we open the brand-new hospital, why that extra $40 million is so important to getting the whole hospital completed,” she said. The emergency department at the current St. Paul’s Hospital sees around 100,000 patient visits each year, exceeding the 65,000 it was initially designed to handle.
