SUNDRE – Funding to assess the Myron Thompson Health Centre that was previously announced pending the approval of the provincial government’s budget has officially been confirmed.
The Sundre Hospital Steering Committee has since being struck last year endeavoured to advocate the provincial government not only for funding to replace the aging hospital but also work toward establishing the community as a campus for rural health-care training.
Representatives from Alberta Health have now officially joined the committee, strengthening collaboration between the local community and the provincial government, according to a press statement issued by the municipality earlier this month.
“The Government of Alberta has confirmed it is launching a structured process of facility evaluation and community consultation for our hospital,” mayor Richard Warnock was quoted as saying.
The provincial government introduced as part of this year’s budget the Rural Hospital Enhancement Program, which reportedly includes $15 million for project planning and will help fund facility and functional assessments for 20 rural hospitals across Alberta.
Topping that list is Sundre.
“We were thrilled to see Myron Thompson at the top of the list for evaluation,” Heidi Overguard of the Sundre Hospital Futures Committee, said in the presser.
Once evaluations are complete, the findings will guide future capital planning, including timelines for design and construction.
Responding to follow-up questions, Warnock told the Albertan when asked how long the evaluations are expected to take, “We have no idea. The best thing we have going for us is we’re number one; so they’re doing us first.”
While there had already previously been some informal site visits by provincial representatives conducting preliminary inspections, “They now will send real professionals in there and go to work and do the report,” he said.
“Hopefully, we get it over the summer and that can become our number one priority in the fall.”
As to whether the report will be released only once all of the other facilities have been assessed, he said, “We did ask that. We did not get a positive answer, but they alluded to the fact that each one is held independently.
“I read in between the lines that if they find something that really comes to attention, that they may deal with it rather than wait until they’re all done. But they would not, of course, commit to that.”
As to whether there might be an estimated timeline when a more concrete funding announcement for a new facility could be anticipated, he said, “I really would love to see a report done by the end of this year. We will keep pushing for that.”
The facility in Sundre opened in 1968 and a celebratory 50-year anniversary was held in 2018.
“Personally, I think that it’s a need for Sundre to have a new hospital and a campus of care. And the sooner, the better,” the mayor said, recognizing studies and funding approvals take time.
The Sundre Hospital Steering Committee includes members from the Town of Sundre, Mountain View County, the Sundre Hospital Futures Committee, local physicians, and most recently, provincial representatives.
