Mills Memorial Hospital Replacement - Terrace, BC

Hi, 

Good question. We recognize parking is a challenge. There's a Let's Talk post that answers these questions. 

Lots of info about is available on Let's Talk, and you can find it by using the 'search bar' in the top right corner. Anything you can't find, we welcome submitted questions like this. 

Here's what the post says: 

The new Mills Memorial Hospital is being built on the same site as the existing hospital and as a result, the current Seven Sisters facility must be removed to make room for the new hospital. This will ensure that we are able to construct a hospital that will meet the growing needs of Terrace and the region.

Although the current Seven Sisters is relatively new, opening in 2005, much has changed within the mental health services field since that time and the new Seven Sisters will be built to meet those modern standards.

The new Seven Sisters will be almost double the size of the current facility, with an increase of five beds, and have improved patient amenities not possible in the current facility – for example, recreation and group spaces, two apartments, a treatment room to better support people on site, a sensory room, and a large conference space.

Thanks for the question.

Firstly, at any time, MMH staff and physicians are welcome and encouraged to provide feedback or ask a question about the project by emailing letstalkMMH@northernhealth.ca. Or they are welcome to talk to project or Administration team at the hospital.

To provide some context to your question, the design of the new hospital must look at a number of factors, all of which must be weighed and balanced in the final build. This includes but is not limited to:

• Best practices
• Clinical and operational staff input
• Budget
• Business plan
• Cultural considerations
• Department workflows and functions
• Indigenous and community input
• Local population
• Services offered
• Site and location
• Statement of requirements

The basic design of the new hospital is based on services, best practices and input from physicians, nurses, clinicians, and many allied workers that use the facility to fulfill health care needs every day.

We’ve engaged with current staff in a number of ways with the following being some of the most significant ways, starting at the beginning of the project to more recent activities. These engagement activities and many others have resulted in various evolutions to many parts of the hospital design – from department layouts, room layouts, materials used, furnishings, etc.

Engagement activities with staff:

• A series of engagement meeting took place with MMH staff and physicians during the development of the new hospital’s concept plan and business case.
• Several rounds of comprehensive meetings took place over the course of almost two years (202/2021), while the hospital was being designed. Those meetings included members of the project team, the design team and representatives from various departments at MMH, including staff and physicians. In those meetings, staff representatives provided input design, operational workflows, and equipment needs for the services provided.
• In 2021, draft designs of the new hospital were released and a display for staff and physicians was set up in the hospital, close to the cafeteria. Staff and physicians had the opportunity to comment and ask questions.
• Recently, in the fall of 2022, we held several project information sessions (virtual and in person), specifically for MMH staff and physicians. Those sessions were recorded and emailed to all staff, so that anyone who wasn’t able to attend could watch and listen, and provide feedback and questions. More info sessions are planned for this year.
• On an ongoing basic, members of NH leadership, MMH Administration and the project team consult with MMH staff and physicians.
• On an ongoing basic and as need, we responding to emails and phone calls.

Anyone with a question or feedback can get in touch any time through the following means:

• Visit letstalk.northernhealth.ca/mmh
• Email letstalkmmh@northernhealth.ca

Going forward, project work is shifting from designing the new hospital to becoming operationally ready, along with detailed move and occupancy planning.

Over the next year, current staff, physicians and others will have opportunities to be engaged in developing and understanding service delivery models for most areas in the new hospital, and in the development of workflows and standard operating procedures. Following that, it is anticipated there will be opportunities to participate in tabletop simulation exercises prior to the construction being completed.

The purpose of this type of work is to identify and address operational risks before any patients, staff or visitors walk through the doors of the new facility. This work will also contribute to the development of training and orientation plans.

Thanks again for your question. 

The birthing unit in the new hospital will have six Labour, Delivery, Recovery and Postpartum (LDRP) rooms. Women will labour and deliver, as well as recover and receive postpartum care in the same room. This means women will no longer have to move rooms after delivery as they do in the current hospital.

The new rooms are each designed with a private bathroom and window. Each room will also a couch or sleeper sofa for visitors, as well as a birthing sling that allows for flexibility and comfort during labour and delivery. 

One of the rooms, which is larger than the others, was designed to support twin deliveries. This room has a barrier free shower and bathtub. 

In addition to the six LDRP rooms, the birthing unit will have a waiting area, two triage assessment areas, a resuscitation room, and additional private rooms to provide antepartum and post operative caesarean care. A four bed special care nursery is also planned. 

We will share more details once the design is finalized.

Thanks so much for your question. You are not the only one who has asked questions about the number of beds at the new hospital and whether it will be enough to accommodate the local and regional population’s needs going forward.

The rigorous planning process for the new Mills Memorial Hospital has taken place over approximately the past 10 years and was thoroughly reviewed throughout by the Ministry of Health. It consisted of several stages including master planning, master programming, concept planning, and finally, business planning.

During the planning stages, initial work centres around population projections - more specifically, what the age/sex adjusted population will look like 10, 20, 30, 40 years out. These projections are then modelled and used to estimate the healthcare demand for a community - from the number of diagnostic exams expected, to the number of inpatient hospital beds. 

Resource Planning Group (RPG), a leading consulting firm that specializes in master planning and functional programming in the health care sector was part of the MMH planning process. This firm worked diligently, using the same method they’ve used to calculate bed counts in other new facilities, to calculate the appropriate bed counts for the new Mills Memorial Hospital.

You asked specifically about the number of beds in the medical/surgical department.

Northern Health has undertaken various bed modelling work for both acute and long-term care, and the different hospital departments. This takes many factors into account including, but not limited to, emerging technologies that impact hospital stays, future redevelopment work, future plans for other facilities and services, and design features to help manage potential overflow.

For example, attention is being paid to the number of Alternate Level of Care (ALC) patient counts in hospitals, which we recognize have been and remain high. Planning for additional long term care capacity in communities, which is underway regionally and provincially, would see these patients being cared for in other facilities or environments, freeing up acute care bed capacity.

Another example is planning for expanding psychiatry bed capacity outside of acute care units such as med-surg.

Taking these and other new measures into account, it is anticipated that the new bed counts will be appropriate for future service levels.

We understand staff concerns around bed counts and having sufficient resources and means to give all patients the best care possible. We assure you that we share these concerns and are doing our best to address them.

As for future questions or if you wish more information, we are planning to host several information sessions on the new hospital in the fall. Some of these information sessions will be public, while others will be specifically for MMH staff and physicians.

You can also email letstalkMMH@northernhealth.ca if you have further questions.

Thanks for asking about this important issue. Northern Health does not manage blood donations. Blood donation in Canada is managed and coordinated by Canadian Blood Services (https://www.blood.ca/en). Should Canadian Blood Services reach out to Northern Health about donor clinics in our area, we would aim to work with them to support that. However, there’s no dedicated area in the new hospital for this purpose.

As for blood supply for patients, Mills Memorial Hospital has a supply of blood on hand at all times.

More info about donating blood can also be found at Health Link BC: https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/health-topics/uf10217

Thanks for asking about this important issue. Northern Health does not manage blood donations. Blood donation in Canada is managed and coordinated by Canadian Blood Services (https://www.blood.ca/en). Should Canadian Blood Services reach out to Northern Health about donor clinics in our area, we would aim to work with them to support that. However, there’s no dedicated area in the new hospital for this purpose.

As for blood supply for patients, Mills Memorial Hospital has a supply of blood on hand at all times.

More info about donating blood can also be found at Health Link BC: https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/health-topics/uf10217

Thanks for the question as it's one we get often. Plans for the new hospital do no include a helipad.

Northern Health had a third party lead a process to review the development of a helipad as part of the Mills Memorial Hospital replacement project. Two final reports from this process are available to the public: 

• Final assessment report
• Ground Effects Aerodrome report

The review process concluded that:

• The airport is the optimal location for fixed and rotary wing emergency transportation
• The current project is prohibitive for the development of a ground level helipad at this time
• The risks associated with helicopters incidents at a healthcare facility helipad when compared to the short travel distance from the airport to the helipad are significant

Northern Health remains committed to long-term planning for air support and further reviews of helipad locations may occur in the future. 

Yes! The current plans do have locked bike storage. 

Hi. Thanks for the question! Flat roofs are actually quite common for commercial buildings and have many benefits. They tend to leak as a result of defects. The roof of the new hospital will have a small slope to drain water to designated drain points. Hopefully that eases some of your concerns.