Mills Memorial Hospital Replacement - Terrace, BC

Some areas will be landscaped later this year, but most landscaping work will happen in 2025 and 2026, after the demolition of the current hospital.

New pathways on the south end of the new hospital.Preparing the ground for paving in front of the new hospital.

Two examples of technology aimed at enhancing the patient experience in the new Terrace hospital include a wayfinding kiosk and virtual skylights.

Patients and visitors will need help getting around the significantly larger new hospital. Much thought has been put into the wayfinding system for the new site. One interactive piece of that system is an electronic wayfinding kiosk in the main lobby. The kiosk will have a touch screen, similar to those found in many airports and shopping malls. The kiosk will help orient people to the building and get them where they want to go.

Another example of technology in the new facility that will benefit patients and staff is virtual skylights in the Spect-CT room and in the MRI room.

“It’s basically a large light box above where patients lie down on the scan table. A nature image and the light let them imagine they are looking out a window or skylight,” says Marina Downs, Diagnostic Imaging Manager at MMH. “The idea is to create a more soothing environment in one that can often feel cold and sterile. The skylights will help patients feel more relaxed. In turn, they are more likely to hold still during their exams.”

Anne Chisholm, MMH Project Transition & Move Coordinator, stands with the new wayfinding kiosk in the lobby of the new hospital...

The virtual skylight on the ceiling of the Spect-CT room.

Cameron Orr's baby girl, born at MMH.

Celebrating MMH through stories - Part 2

Over the past 80 years, MMH has been part of many families’ stories – stories of joy, hope, change, and loss. As we look forward to the new hospital, we want to honour special moments that occurred at MMH.

Check out some of stories we’ve received so far. The stories are truly special and we thank everyone who’s shared so far!

• Vi Timmerman
  “My introduction to Terrace was Dr. REM Lee. We arrived the summer of 1969 and I needed gallbladder surgery. I was told by my Doctor in Langley that “the best doctor in the province is in Terrace." He really was an excellent doctor.Several years later Dr. Kenyon saved a family member’s life. We’ll always be grateful to him and our community is fortunate to have him.
  Three of my grandchildren and four great grandchildren were all born at Mills Memorial Hospital. We have always received excellent care and wish the best of luck to all the staff.”
  
  
• Birgitta van Heek
  “I have never forgotten the year Mills Memorial Hospital opened – 1961. I was in Grade 7 at the time and played in the Skeena Secondary Band at the official opening. My classmate Lorne King and I lived on the bench and would travel to practices together…. dressed that day in our Skeena colours...silky satin purple and gold uniforms! I played the trumpet­ – at least attempted to. I am not musical at all and not sure how I qualified to be in the band! That was the only time I remember performing and my musical career ended shortly thereafter but I will never forget that memorable event.”
  
  
• Alexi Rivera
  “In 1989 I lived in Rosswood. I had very bad asthma and got sick quite often. This particular time I got pneumonia and was really sick.
  I spent three weeks in the children’s ward. I turned 13 in the hospital and for my birthday, the nurses bought me a cake. The nurses were amazing and caring the whole time.
  I lived with my grandparents. As we lived in Rosswood, my Grandma wasn’t always able to come visit ­– definitely not every day­ – but the nurses made me feel the love I was missing.
  The nurses were also good with letting my friends come to see me. I went to school at Cassie Hall (across the street) so my friends would come to see me after school sometimes. Of course, kids being kids, we could get noisy but the nurses were pretty chill about it. The old Mills will always be in my memory because of this experience.”
  
  
• Cameron Orr
  “We needed to arrange the birth of our second child in Terrace rather than in Kitimat, where we live. We'd come to the hospital many times leading up to the birth day, and the day of was wonderful. We even took a walk at Ferry Island before heading to the hospital for the evening. Our doctor was amazing and the birth went very smoothly. The nurses were also stellar. It was a quiet night and they offered – and we accepted – for them to walk with our baby in a carrier while they went about their tasks. This was a great transition to having two kids for us. Our baby is now nearly five and we remember our stay at MMH well.”

We want to hear your story!

Help us honour the existing Mills Memorial Hospital in Terrace and all those who have worked and received care there. Learn more at Celebrate MMH.

Check out a time-lapse video of the construction of the new hospital. The one-minute video shows from when the land was cleared in May 2021, until what the new hospital looks like today, in April 2024, just a few months before it's set to open.

Check out a time-lapse video of the construction of the new Seven Sisters. The video shows from when the site prep work began at the end of August 2022, until February 2024, when residents and staff moved into the new building.

The current Mills Memorial Hospital in still stands. Seven Sisters staff and residents will continue to use the back entrance, on the west side of the new facility, until the existing hospital is removed in 2025. Landscaping for the whole site, including around the new Seven Sisters, will happen next.

Heads up! ]Spring cleaning is upon us.

The annual spring sweeping of the Mills Memorial Hospital parking lots at is happening this coming Easter weekend, from Friday, March 29 until Monday, April 1. This will likely result in dust in the air so you may want to keep your windows closed. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Don’t be alarmed if you see steam, or hear a hissing noise over the next couple weeks.

From approximately Saturday, March 23 to Sunday, April 7, boilers at the new hospital will be started up.

During the start-up, the system will be flushed clean using high pressure steam, which will be continuously vented to the building’s exterior.

This venting can be a loud continuous hissing noise and may appear as a 20–30-foot smoke-plume. (This is actually high-pressure steam but can look like smoke.)

Venting will occur on several occasions during the two-week start-up period. Once the steam system is started up and in service, it remains in service.

These boilers will support hospital operations. They will produce the steam used to heat water in the new hospital and support the sterilization of surgical equipment, among other things

No danger or risk

During this start up process and ongoing operations, there is no risk of any hazardous contaminants being expelled.

All work is within the new hospital construction site, and the entire operation will be supervised and secure with safety measures & control zones in place.

All work will also be in accordance with local noise bylaws, between 7am and 7pm.

Emergency services (police and fire) have also been informed.

Premier David Eby took time out of his busy schedule in Terrace, on Friday, March 18, to visit the new hospital and new Seven Sisters. Northern Health representatives, including Board Chair Colleen Nyce, were pleased to have the chance to discuss the future of health care in the region with the Premier.

Northern Health Board Chair Colleen Nyce (left) welcomes BC Premier David Eby and others.

Group photo including BC Premier David Eby, MLAs Jennifer Rice and Nathan Cullen, Terrace Mayor Sean Bujtas, and Northern Health and PCL staff and representatives.

Enjoying the natural light and sunshine in the new cancer care area in the new hospital.

The ceiling and floor design in the new hospital's Spiritual Space replicates flowing water, a symbol of healing. BC Premier David Eby (centre) and Northern Health representatives and staff outside the new Seven Sisters.

The time has come to start building permanent parking for the new hospital, and with that comes some more temporary changes to MMH parking.

These changes will take be implemented as of Wednesday, March 13, 2024.

With the removal of the former Seven Sisters facility, PCL will begin work in front of the main and emergency entrance areas of the new hospital. For this work to happen most of the temporary gravel parking lot on Tetrault Street will be removed. The area will be fenced off and become part of the construction site.

To make up for lost spots and help ease parking challenges until the new, permanent parking is available, we will be making the following changes:

• Adding a row of temporary parking spots, from east to west, along the hospital access road that runs from Tetrault Street to the existing hospital’s Emergency Department
• Temporarily reconfiguring the parking next to the new Seven Sisters parking lot to accommodate more vehicles
• Finding alternative off-site parking for NH service vehicles not needed on site at all times

We understand this is not an ideal situation. It is challenging and inconvenient. If possible, we ask you to consider:

• Arriving early
• Carpooling
• Getting dropped off and picked up (especially if you have mobility issues)

Thank you again for your patience at this time.

We are getting ready to open the new hospital in November 2024 - just a few months away! To ensure a smooth move and operations, many details need to be in place. All hands are on deck, working hard to ensure the transition to the new hospital is as positive and comfortable an experience as possible for all patients and staff.

Planning for the actual physical move is just getting underway. We are working closely with Health Care Relocations (HCR), a company that specializes in healthcare facility transitions. The company will support with operational readiness, the physical move between the facilities, and the activation of the new hospital.

MMH managers will be meeting individually with company representatives to discuss department-specific details. For example, some departments will have equipment that requires the help of a vendor. Items from the hospital can be moved in various phases. The goal is to move as few items as possible when patients are moved.

For a hospital the size of MMH, the move will likely be completed within one week and the actual patient move in one day. To help with the transition, and with the support of regional staff and other hospitals, we will aim to reduce activity and patient levels at MMH leading up to the move. Stay tuned for more info as we continue to get ready!