The Sundre Hospital and Care Centre's long-term care beds might have just been thrown a lifeline.
Or at least five of them have.
About 150 people who attended a public meeting at the community centre last Thursday night to learn about a proposed plan created in part by the Sundre Hospital Futures Committee, heard that Health Minister Sarah Hoffman has agreed to a comprise she is willing to work with.
Of the 15 long-term care beds Alberta Health Services officials had planned to shut down following an abrupt announcement in March that caught the community off guard and caused an instant backlash, five could remain open.
Another four beds could be converted into restorative care beds, a relatively new model of care not previously available in Sundre, while another three beds would be used for other community needs. Three beds will still have to be closed to accommodate the space necessary for the hospital's lab services to meet national accreditation standards.
Local doctor Rob Warren, a member of the hospital futures committee, told the crowd that while AHS approached the whole situation wrong, officials were right about the fact Sundre's hospital does not require 15 long-term care beds. He added that most patients currently in those beds do not need such a high level of care and will actually be better off in the new Mountain View Seniors' Housing facility. While the actual needed number of long-term care beds fluctuates constantly with time, anywhere from about four to six long-term care beds would be sufficient to meet local needs, he said.
To recap, the proposed plan would ensure Sundre's hospital retains long-term care services that would still cater to the community's needs. It's not a perfect plan, but it sure beats losing all the long-term care beds as AHS had originally planned, said Warren.
But there's a catch.
The community has to support it. And there is only so much time to respond, as a final decision is needed before the new seniors' care facility opens this summer. So the public only has until this Thursday, May 12 to email their thoughts on the proposal to [email protected].
Of course the proposed plan is just the first step. However, it will no doubt come as a welcome one to the community. Other municipalities that fought similar closures and lost would have no doubt gladly accepted such an option.
But it nevertheless remains a first step.
The hospital is aging, and there is a general consensus in the community that Sundre needs a new facility.
That will only happen with the continued hard work of local health-care professionals and all the support the community can muster behind them.
