Ambulatory Care

The need
The need is to bring ambulatory care—outpatient services—together in one easily accessible central location.

The facts

• Over the years, there has been a steady growth in demand for ambulatory care, due in part to the growth in population and in part to improved technologies, procedures and medications. Long periods of hospitalization are giving way to procedures that can be completed in day surgery, clinics or other forms of outpatient treatments. The responsibility of care is shifting from in-patient care to ambulatory care.
• Today, ambulatory services are spread throughout the hospital. In addition to the inconvenience, staff face the challenge of streamlining services and coordinating appointments.
• Our outpatient services lack a central booking area, and service areas lack reception or waiting rooms.
• The lack of centralized services limits our ability to host clinics for visiting sub-specialists and to hold public information sessions on topics such as Learning to Live with Diabetes; Choices for Healthy Living; Parenting and Nutrition; How to Manage Asthma.
• The statistics reflect a growing community’s increased demand for ambulatory care, with 9,500 visits for ambulatory services in 1999/2000; 12,800 visits at present; and 21,600 visits projected for 2015/2016.

The plan
Again, the plan is simple: to pool many of the ambulatory service into one central location with centralized admitting and reception. In the new facility, the ambulatory umbrella will include: Medical Day Care, Cast Clinic, Pre-Admission Clinic, Bronchoscopy and Endoscopy Clinics, Respiratory Services, Home IV Program, and Cataract Surgery. Today, in their various locations throughout the hospital, they account for 735 m² (7,900 ft²) of space. In the new facility, Ambulatory Care services will occupy an area of 1,186 m² (12,120 ft²).

We will gain efficiencies in our admitting process. We will alleviate space pressures and position ourselves to accommodate future growth. We will offer more convenient one-stop-approach service to our patients. We will have a place in which to host clinics for specialists and sub-specialists, an effective way to expand the services offered, not by the hospital, but through the hospital.