Andrew McLetchie, vice-president of Integrated Northern Health with Saskatchewan Health Authority, was the keynote panellist at a community health meeting at the Civic Centre auditorium last Thursday night. Roughly 150 people turned out to hear their health-related questions answered. Geoff Lee Meridian Source
Lloydminster and area residents may have to wait until a new health services needs assessment is complete before seeing more improvements or capital investments.
Everything from upgrading the intensive care unit and creating mental health stabilization beds at the Lloydminster Hospital to adding more continuing-care spaces is in limbo.
That was the main message from bi-provincial health officials during a well-attended community question and answer meeting at the Civic Centre auditorium last Thursday.
Event organizer and chair of Lloydminster and District Health Advisory Council, Paul Richer, was hoping for more.
“Maybe there’ll be some new revelations, especially in the question and answer period,” he said before the meeting got underway.
In a report to the Rotary Club of Lloydminster on Monday, Richer said the important thing is high-ranking officials from the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) and Alberta Health Services (AHS) were here.
“For them to come down here, I was impressed and I think a lot of our committee was impressed,” said Richer.
The audience learned a consultant will soon be hired to kick off a new Integrated Health Services and Facility Infrastructure Needs Assessment with an 18-24 month completion date.
The assessment will cover health system planning within a 150-kilometre radius of Lloydminster.
The decision to update the 2013 needs assessment was made during a Bi-Provincial Health Services Committee meeting this spring, according to a handout document.
Andrew McLetchie, vice-president, integrated northern health, SHA, opened with a presentation reviewing existing health services by SHA. AHS also revealed the new dialysis unit is on track for completion by late summer 2024.
The needs assessment carries the promise of more timeline improvements at the hospital and the replacement of the Jubilee Home.
New Saskatchewan assistant deputy health minister, Norm O’Neill, couldn’t say when something will happen. However, he did explain how the capital project process works to provide for the capital needs of the Lloydminster Hospital and the much-needed replacement of the aging Jubilee Home, with the assessment pending.
“In general, the capital process is one where the community brings needs forward through the Saskatchewan Health Authority into the ministry,” he said.
O’Neill went on to say the upcoming assessment will “probably include a capital component as well. The specific Jubilee, I can’t speak to it at this stage. I’m green, unfortunately.”
McLetchie suggested some other options for hospital replacement, renovation or expansion that the new assessment might identify.
“Sometimes there’s opportunities to use existing space and do renovations and sometimes event additions,” he said.
“All of that is part of the process, but the first and most important step, and probably the most exciting step, is that needs assessment.”
He thinks Lloydminster is positioned really well as a community, having an advisory council in place.
He called Richer’s group “the most informed community group I have ever met with.”
Sherie Allen, vice-president, central zone north, Alberta Health Services (AHS), jumped on the assessment topic as well, noting an updated version has been long overdue since 2014.
“It is a very exciting time because it really helps us with the data we need in order to push things forward and look at what we can and will do differently,” said Allen.
“This is something we are excited to partner with.”
Lloydminster Region Health Foundation CEO, Stephanie Munro, acted as master of ceremonies with an endless stack of audience questions.
One of the zingers that earned applause was, “Do you think zero is the right size of mental health beds fora service area the size of Lloydminster?”
“We need to consider mental health services as a sort of a continuum of care. Beds are one part of that,” replied McLetchie.
“Having access to care needs when you are in crisis is really important.There is preventative mental health needs and the community based services that the majority of people with mental health need.”
He says the review that’s being done in Lloydminster will take into account the bed question and could determine if there is need for mental care in-patient capacity in Lloydminster.
The panelists agreed to email all of the answers to questions they couldn’t get to in the next two months.
The panelists included Andrew Will CEO of SHA and Debora Okrainetz director of continuing care North East Central Zone AHS.
Another speaker not on the panel was Leonard Wegner, director of continuing care Lloydminster and area SHA.
Lloydminster MLA Colleen brought greetings on behalf of Saskatchewan premier Moe.
Martin Long, a newly appointed Alberta Parliamentary secretary for rural health toured some facilities with Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright MLA Garth Rowswell and added his opening remarks.
“I do look forward to hearing some of the issues that are quite unique to Lloydminster, but also are similar issues that we face broadly around Alberta,” said Long.
