Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation busy with several projects

“It’s more of an advocacy, trying to get Alberta Health Services and Alberta Health to recognize that we just need more cardiac care services in Grande Prairie.”

At its March 11 meeting, city council made more medical care supports, like a catheterization lab, one of the key priorities on its list of things it also wants to advocate for and come to Grande Prairie.

The foundation is not yet fundraising for this, but they do have a donor. Curtis says they’re “dedicated to making this happen” with the idea of having this come about in the next eight years.

Curtis says the foundation is currently raising money for a mobile mammography unit.

“That’s a partnership we actually have with the Alberta Cancer Foundation. We partnered with them to raise $1.5 million for (a) unit for the North Zone within Alberta Health Services.”

“It’s basically a unit, a bus, that goes from community to community and they’re able to actually do mammographies in those communities.”

Curtis says there is also work being done on mental health. Money is being raised for two camps for youth.

“One is a teen program. It’s basically life skills programs that help youth develop (ways) how to deal with difficult situations and that kind of stuff.”

“Another one is an Indigenous youth camp for our region, so we we’re doing those. We do have a donor who has generously funded three years of the Indigenous youth day camps.”

Curtis says there is also a need to raise money for a healing space for Indigenous youth at Youth Addiction and Mental Health Services.

The foundation is also looking at helping add some capacity for detox at the Northern Addiction Centre.

They are also looking at mobile addiction and mental health services treatment van and transitional housing for someone who might be having inpatient mental health and addiction treatment. Details are still being worked out.

Curtis there are future ideas that they would like to see but are what he calls “pipe dreams” right now.

One is a dedicated women’s health clinic. Curtis says some local physicians think it would be a good idea to have this, but they don’t know what it would look like or where it would be located.

Another future idea is a robotic surgery suite. Curtis says they don’t know what that would look like and none of the current doctors are trained in this area. He adds these surgeries can be less invasive and more accurate. They don’t yet know how it would be funded, where it would be located or what it would look like.

Both these ideas are outside of the foundation’s current five-year strategic plan, says Curtis.

He says the foundation also continues to try to raise money to improve primary care. He says this is an important first step that could keep people out of the health system and provide more people with a family doctor, so they don’t have to go to the emergency department.

Curtis says they are working with AHS, local physicians, and other community members on what this work will look like.

by Curtis Galbraith

Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation busy with several projects

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