As the Humboldt District Health Complex (HDHC) gets ever nearer to completion, a massive grand-opening and an even larger move is in the final planning stages.
The grand opening of the HDHC, which Premier Brad Wall is attending, will take place on April 1, before any services move into the new building. Public tours of the $40 million, 80,000 square foot facility will also be held before the move.
Why?
There are two reasons, noted Kelvin Fisher, Director of Rural Health and Planning for the Saskatoon Health Region (SHR).
"We don't want the tours to disrupt the care and privacy of our inpatients or any patients and clients receiving their care," he said.
And second, "we really want to give the public a chance to take a really close look at the building."
And that's something that just can't happen with a facility that's already open and functioning.
"This has been such a long journey for everyone, and everyone has put money into the building. We want people to get a feel for (the building)," Fisher said. "We wouldn't be able to give as much (public) access to the building if (the tours) were after the move."
The tours "give an opportunity to see areas of the hospital the general public won't get to see when the hospital is in full operation," said Yvonne Berscheid, site manager for the Humboldt District Hospital.
Places like the operating room and the sterile processing department, she said, will have no public access after the move is complete.
The tour will also give the public a sense of the size of the new space and all of the services it will offer.
Berscheid believes the public will be impressed by the facility and by the equipment already installed in places like the operating room that the community worked so hard to pay for.
"We are very excited to show it off," she said.
The tours are being organized by the Humboldt District Hospital Foundation (HDHF), and will be taking place April 1, 2 and 3. They will be scheduled throughout those days and will leave every 15 minutes.
There is room for 10 people on each tour, which means that if the tours are all full, over 900 people will get a chance to walk through the new HDHC.
The public won't be able to see the entire building on their hour-long walking tour. Some parts will be cordoned off so they stay clean for the upcoming move. For instance, the tour will only include a few inpatient rooms, as they are mostly the same.
Other areas that would result in bottle-necking for groups of people, or more dangerous places like the mechanical mezzanine, will also not be seen on the walking tour.
"There are very limited parts of the building the public won't be able to see (firsthand)," Fisher promised. "People can feel confident that they will have seen a good cross-section of the building (on the walking tour)."
A virtual tour will both introduce the public to the building, and show some of the cordoned off areas.
"The video tour... will give (people) an idea of what they are about to see, and see the areas they won't be able to see," Berscheid noted.
The walking tours will be conducted by volunteers and staff who will follow scripts containing information about the new facility.
Those planning to take in a tour are encouraged to book a time with the HDHF, as there is no guarantee that those who show up without booking a tour will be able to see the facility.
People should also wear comfortable clothing and shoes.
"We want to stress to people that they will be walking a lot and standing," said Lorrie Bunko of the HDHF.
People are welcome to bring their mobility devices like walkers or wheelchairs, she noted, as there will not be any available in the new facility, though there will be some regular chairs for those who need to rest at some points.
They do want to discourage people bringing their mobility scooters, however, due to some of the tighter areas on the tour.
Virtual tours of the facility will also be offered online at some point, Bunko added.
The move
While the building will not be operational at the time of the grand opening or the tours, the public is being asked to pay attention to communications from the SHR regarding the move into the new facility.
Right now, it looks as though the move for hospital services will begin on April 6, and the last major part of it - moving the emergency room and inpatients into the new facility - will happen on April 12.
"It's really important that the public realize that actual patient services won't be starting until April 12 at the new hospital," Berscheid stressed.
After the tours are over, the hospital will have to be cleaned again, staff training will take place for some of the new equipment, and the move of the HDH will begin.
Community Services will be the last area to move, Fisher stated, but the entire move should be completed in under three weeks.
Services will continue to be offered in the existing hospital and the community services building during and after the grand opening of the HDHC, and even while the move is occurring, Fisher noted.
It will be a complicated move, to say the least, and the sequence of it will be very important in order to maintain services.
"It's a really complicated sequence of events," Fisher said.
The public is asked to watch for communications from the SHR in regards to the move, so they know where services will be found at any given time.
More details on the move will be forthcoming after the grand opening and tours have taken place.
The SHR is going to be putting out a newsletter to 11,000 mailboxes in the region with information on the grand opening and tours.
To book a tour, people can phone or email the HDHF.
