p.e.i. celebrates opening of new summerside community health centre
3 minute read
the new summerside community health centre opened in early july.
kristin gardiner
/
journal pioneer
summerside, p.e.i. — nearly five years after it was first announced, summerside has opened the doors of its new health centre.
while the summerside community health centre opened in early july, staff and politicians came together july 30 to formally celebrate what many called a step forward for health care in the province.
andrea wile, director of primary health care operations with health p.e.i., said the centre’s first few weeks have run relatively seamlessly and she is excited to see it up and running and providing patients with a variety of care under one roof.
many services
the new centre will provide services like primary care, the provincial geriatrics program, public health, mental health and addictions, the needle exchange program and lab services, which wile said will allow for collaboration among workers and better care for patients.
“a facility like this welcomes individuals to come in for a variety of services, and it’s really important that they have that as close together as they possibly can,” she said.
“so instead of having to go to a few different buildings across town, they can now come into one building to receive their care.”
andrea wile, director of primary health care operations with health p.e.i., is excited to see the summerside community health centre open and providing patients with care. she believes having a variety of services in the same building will assist with patient care and collaboration between medical staff.
kristin gardiner
/
journal pioneer
issues in the health care system, like busy emergency rooms or the ever-growing patient registry, won’t resolve overnight, said wile, but every new piece put in place, like the health centre, is a step in the right direction.
vacancies
wile also acknowledged the centre still has vacancies that health p.e.i. is working to fill. the centre, she hopes, will help recruitment efforts so that it can successfully provide the services it set out to provide.
“we’ve already heard that,” said wile. “people are drawn to the shiny new spaces, sometimes. it’s the people that will keep them here, but it’s definitely a wonderful recruitment tool and we’ve already seen some really great successes with that.
advertisement
“people have been excited before this building even opened.”
health and wellness minister cory deagle, likewise, hopes the space will attract new medical professionals to the area, and added that several existing services in the city are moving to the new building.
p.e.i. health and wellness minister cory deagle hopes the new summerside community health centre will help with efforts to recruit medical professionals. kristin gardiner
“i know some people say, well, why are we building this brand new facility if we don’t have the people to work in it, or we need to focus on recruiting people — which we are. we’re making significant changes behind the scenes in recruitment and how we recruit health-care professionals to p.e.i.,” said deagle.
“but i’m a big believer in ‘build it and they will come.’ if we don’t have state of the art facilities like this, how are we attracting physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, all the health-care professionals that make our system work? having facilities like this, i think, will help attract them from around the world and across canada.”
years in the making
deagle echoed wile’s sentiments that the building will ideally provide better care to patients. he is glad to see it opened after years in the making.
the new summerside health centre will house a variety of services under one roof, such as primary care, public health and mental health and addictions. kristin gardiner
he added that the centre is just one more part of how the department is aiming to take some pressure off the existing system, and named pharmacy plus — expanding the scope of pharmacists — as another example.
“i think what this will do, having a state of the art facility like this, a $30-million facility in summerside, has helped attract physicians, health-care professionals, nps, et cetera, to want to work here,” said deagle.
“and when you’re touring a possible new physician, or a resident that’s coming out of medical school, and they’re in a facility like this? hopefully, they’re gonna say, ‘wow. i would love to live and work here.’”
- stay informed: don’t miss the news you need to know. sign up for our newsletter today.
advertisement
kristin gardiner is a reporter for the journal pioneer in prince edward island. she can be reached at kgardiner@postmedia.com.
share story
