Patients will have better access to high quality care, thanks to the expansion of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s day surgery department, says Health and Wellness Minister Doug Currie.
“Our government recognizes the important roles our hospitals play in providing Islanders with the care they need. By investing in the expansion of the day surgery department at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, we’re able to reduce wait times and provide better care for all Islanders,” said the minister. “I am pleased to see that the first stage of the expansion has now been completed.”
Once fully completed later this spring, the expansion will increase the number of day surgery spaces from 10 to 18. Additional consultation rooms will provide for more pre- and post-surgical procedures and allow for post-operative recovery rather than transfer patients to the surgical nursing unit. A dedicated space for post-operative caesarian-section patients will ensure appropriate privacy for families and their new babies.
As part of the expansion to be completed for this spring, a separate Ophthalmology Surgical Suite will allow timely access to cataract surgery and reduce wait times.
Units which support the day surgery department are moving into their new space this week. Work will then begin on the final stages of the expansion, which will more than triple the space to approximately 21,000 square feet.
“We are very excited to see day surgery department services relocate to their new areas,” says Jamie MacDonald, Chief Administrative Officer for the QEH and Community Hospitals East. “Staff and patients will begin to enjoy benefits from the larger, more modernly equipped space that offers improved patient privacy, confidentiality and an overall more comfortable experience.”
The day surgery department expansion will complete the first phase of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s redevelopment project, which also included construction of a new emergency department, ambulatory care centre and expansion of the provincial cancer treatment centre. This is the first renovation to the surgery department and its support services since the hospital first opened 30 years ago.
Backgrounder:
The existing combined footprint of the Pre-Surgery Clinic, Day Surgery, PACU and Ophthalmology Surgical Suite is approximately 6,000 square-feet.
The renovated and expanded combined footprint of these services will be approximately 21,000 square feet.
The additional space will be acquired by expanding services into the hospital’s old emergency department which is being renovated as part of the project.
The renovated spaces will feature:
• Additional consultation rooms in the Pre-Surgery Clinic will allow for more anesthesia assessments, pre-rehabilitation consults and other pre-surgical consults and teachings.
• Additional patient care spaces in Day Surgery will improve timely access to the service and allow for improved continuity of care, as post-operative patient recovery will take place within the Day Surgery Department as opposed to the current practice of post-operative patient transfers to the surgical nursing unit.
• Increased number of patient care bays in PACU from 10 to 18 will ensure efficient transitioning of elective and emergency surgery patients from the operating room to the recovery area post-surgery minimizing delays in the operating room due to patient congesting in PACU.
• A new post-operative caesarian-section patient care bay will be designed to ensure appropriate privacy allowing new mothers to spend time with their baby and partner right after birth, which has been demonstrated to be important for bonding and breastfeeding.
• A separate and dedicated Ophthalmology Surgical Suite will allow timely access to cataract surgery and reduce overall wait times.
• Enhanced infection prevention and control measures such as increased number of isolation rooms and availability of washrooms will reduce the risk of cross-infection of diseases such as superbugs.