UCP “Pauses” New SW Hospital in Edmonton

[Sloughsharkjigger]

Originally Posted by jstubbs

https://edmontonjournal.com/news/pol...pital-lagrange

No new hospitals built in Edmonton since 1988. Population has doubled since then. Wait times in ER longest they’ve been. $5 billion dollar budget surplus.

New hospital? Nah, we’ll spend $330m toward a new arena for Calgary instead.

Easy answer for our current "leaders".

Hospitals are a cash sink… arenas make money… nuff said.

[Smoky buck]

Originally Posted by DirtShooter

Or you'd see a lot of under qualified workers.... also if work was enforced and nurses weren't allowed to sit on their phones for an entire shift you'd some service.

The requirements for education for healthcare positions has actually increased so anything beyond that is like any other job building skills with experience. No matter what is done Alberta is not going to be able to increase the number of experienced healthcare workers with the completion in Canada or world for that matter

Best that can be done is educate and hopefully have enough good senior staff to overlook them well developing skills.

Just like any field there is definitely lazy people in nursing positions just like there is good ones. Yes they have union backing them but more than anything there is a shortage so you can’t just replace them either. You are likely old enough to have experienced worker shortages where anyone with a heart beat was hired and if they showed up even it they were useless they had a job

Well nursing shortage is the same idea except they can only hire licensed nurses making the hiring pool even smaller. So yeah with the level of demand and shortage makes it easy for the lazy to exploit the situation

It would be great to crack down on those who exploit the situation but who are you going to replace them with is the real problem not union protection or policy’s

I agree with you but I also see why the issues exist

[Dynamic]

If we dick around for another 10 years things will get cheaper right!? Overall just a complete joke of a decision but not surprised. The UCP having the opportunity to stick it to Edmonton and Heath care workers at the same time was too good to miss. The UCP know who their daddies and they fall in line.

[Sloughsharkjigger]

Originally Posted by jungleboy

Edm population in 1988 808000
Edm population in 2024 1.1 mil

That’s a long way from doubled … surprisingly low considering the timeline.

We must consider the point being made… total AB population that is dependant on or has access to the AB health care system HAS doubled since 1988…. Who knows? Inter provincial transfers, pandemic response, degradation of society… no one knows for certain. Just ask the font-liners they will give it straight.

[6.5 shooter]

Originally Posted by Trochu

But....Calgary is more important than Edmonton.

Maybe you should follow the Liberal parties lead, and vote Conservative? Is that not what a Liberal member of parliament told Canadians "Vote liberal and maybe you will get more stuff" Just a thought!

[elkoholik]

Originally Posted by jstubbs

https://edmontonjournal.com/news/pol...pital-lagrange

No new hospitals built in Edmonton since 1988. Population has doubled since then. Wait times in ER longest they’ve been. $5 billion dollar budget surplus.

New hospital? Nah, we’ll spend $330m toward a new arena for Calgary instead.

Just putting this out there as I lived in Edmonton when the new arena was built and there was extensive wait times then. Why do you hack on Calgary getting a new arena when gov funded Edmontons and it is time for a new arena in Calgary? Yes we need hospitals by all means, we also need to attract medical professionals to work in the hospitals we currently have and need to build. Don't need to start putting people against Calgary, we need to stand together, don't need more division.

[jstubbs]

Originally Posted by jungleboy

Edm population in 1988 808000
Edm population in 2024 1.1 mil

That’s a long way from doubled … surprisingly low considering the timeline.

Your first number is metropolitan area (around 580,000 in Edmonton proper in 1988). The second number is Edmonton proper (metro area is close to 1.6m in 2024).

[fishnguy]

Originally Posted by DirtShooter

Wouldn't be such a strain on the ER/hospitals if people quit using the ER as a walk-in clinic.

$50/visit charge for a non emergency ER visit would solve that.

Was sent a letter by my family doctor a while back informing me (and the family) that she is no longer going to be working at the clinic and due to the lack of physicians there is no one to assign us to. Thus, in the very letter, it said that we are to hit the ER room if we need to see a doctor for any reason. A call to the clinic not long ago provided the same info (unless we wanted to wait for an appointment with a resident more than 4 weeks away at that moment). Should we pay $50 per visit?

Also, incidentally, a few years ago (5?), one could hit the ER here in town and be out in half hour tops (unless something serious, of course). It could take a few hours nowadays.

[Penner]

Originally Posted by jungleboy

Edm population in 1988 808000
Edm population in 2024 1.1 mil

That’s a long way from doubled … surprisingly low considering the timeline.

Little misleading. The population for the capital region whom regularly use Edmonton’s facilities is about 1.6m. The Calgary greater region is also about 1.6m. Challenge for Edmonton hospitals is they are first on the list for Northern Alberta and beyond in addition to the load from the capital region.

I think a standalone Stolery solves 2 problems and is the more logical choice. If a new hospital is being built for this province it’s Red Deer where it should be built.

Country wide shortage of health care professionals is a concern no doubt however as the saying goes if you built it they will come.

[elkhunter11]

I have only been in an ER once in the past several years, but I was shocked at the number of addicts/drunks there. If we could reduce the amount of drunks/addicts, how would that effect ER wait times?

[Grizzly Adams1]

Originally Posted by elkhunter11

I have only been in an ER once in the past several years, but I was shocked at the number of addicts/drunks there. If we could reduce the amount of drunks/addicts, how would that effect ER wait times?

How about EMT responses to repeated overdoses ?

[Trochu]

Originally Posted by Penner

Little misleading. The population for the capital region whom regularly use Edmonton’s facilities is about 1.6m. The Calgary greater region is also about 1.6m. Challenge for Edmonton hospitals is they are first on the list for Northern Alberta and beyond in addition to the load from the capital region.

I think a standalone Stolery solves 2 problems and is the more logical choice. If a new hospital is being built for this province it’s Red Deer where it should be built.

Country wide shortage of health care professionals is a concern no doubt however as the saying goes if you built it they will come.

It's all misleading. Do you really care if Edmonton has 10 or 15 hospitals or 5 beds per thousand or 2 beds per thousand? People like to go on about no new hospitals but fail to mention that $100 of millions, if not billions, that have been spent expanding/upgrading the ones that do have. We'd need to see beds in 1988 per capita compared to 2024 before this is even a discussion IMO.

[MountainTi]

Originally Posted by Trochu

It's all misleading. Do you really care if Edmonton has 10 or 15 hospitals or 5 beds per thousand or 2 beds per thousand? People like to go on about no new hospitals but fail to mention that $100 of millions, if not billions, that have been spent expanding/upgrading the ones that do have. We'd need to see beds in 1988 per capita compared to 2024 before this is even a discussion IMO.

This
The gf is a PM for a good sized construction company out of Red Deer of whom the majority of their work is for AHS....and there is a ton of it. Can't remember off hand the amount of money going into the Red Deer hospital but it is huge. So much work been going on there the company has a permanent office trailer.
Seems she is up in Edmonton a couple times a week doing site tours on multiple projects up there.
RMH new surgical unit was another project of hers, supposed to be commissioned any time now I believe.

Expansion seems far more cost effective than new builds

Perhaps if the libs and dippers would quit importing 1/2 million people a year we wouldn't have the shortages in infrastructer we are having now

[pittman]

I suspect it's just partisan politics - the new hospital wasn't DS's idea so that's a place she can save money.

The problem in Edmonton is that the Misercordia is well past it's expiry date. The pipes seem to burst every 3-4 months and large parts of the hospital have to be shut down. It's not much of a hospital to begin with. The vision for this site is for it to be just an urgent care unit serving West Edmonton - analogous to the North East Health Clinic.

Anyhow, most hospital units are running at capacity and bed blockages continue to be a barrier to getting things done. As mentioned we're short manpower and space. Eventually a new hospital will have to be built - might as well get on with it.

[Bigwoodsman]

The province has paid 69 million dollars on this hospital already, and the land isn't even surveyed. How does this happen? This is ridiculous, between the NDP and UCP and nothing done other than consulting?????

BW

[Big Grey Wolf]

Yes new 'Skating rink' in Calgary is more important than New Hospital for entire north half of Alberta.

[Buckhead]

Originally Posted by jungleboy

Edm population in 1988 808000
Edm population in 2024 1.1 mil

That’s a long way from doubled … surprisingly low considering the timeline.

Not sure where you got your numbers;

2024 population = 1,568,000 from what I can find.

[Smoky buck]

Originally Posted by Bigwoodsman

The province has paid 69 million dollars on this hospital already, and the land isn't even surveyed. How does this happen? This is ridiculous, between the NDP and UCP and nothing done other than consulting?????

BW

It happens because of the level of corruption in all political parties in this country using any government funded projects as a way to steal money from the public.

[jstubbs]

Originally Posted by Bigwoodsman

The province has paid 69 million dollars on this hospital already, and the land isn't even surveyed. How does this happen? This is ridiculous, between the NDP and UCP and nothing done other than consulting?????

BW

They did do site earthworks in 2021. Hospitals do take years upon years to design and plan given the complexity of codes, medical technology, and hospital programming. The consultants who do this work are not cheap.