Stacey Rigby, clinical practice leader, Physiotherapy, is looking forward to having more space when Royal Columbian Hospital’s new acute care tower opens in 2025.
Most patients will have their own private room with ensuite bathroom. That’s a big difference from the four-bed rooms in use today.
“It will be fantastic to know that we’re going to have more rooms,” says Stacey. “Having the ability to do some of our patient care within a single bed room and having the room and the space to move around it as we mobilize our patients is going be a huge benefit.”
The extra space will mean there will be less clutter and patients will be able to move around more easily. “Patients will be much safer as they move through their rooms and as they move through the hallways. Whether they’re taking themselves or whether we’re moving them, it’s going to be much easier.”
Stacey and her colleagues in the rehabilitation department work with a lot of equipment, so they are making sure there will be enough storage on the units. The added storage space will mean they will be able to find what they need quickly and easily, so they can spend more time with patients.
New technology will also help staff work more efficiently. As Stacey explains: “One of the things that we’ve struggled with as we’ve mostly moved from a paper chart to an electronic chart is that we didn’t plan for that many staff needing computers. So, as we move forward, technology is definitely top of mind.” Stacey is looking forward to the rehabilitation department being able to take advantage of the recent advancements in technology. As she says, “Better communication tools for the team will ultimately improve the level of care we can provide for our patients.”
The Royal Columbian Hospital redevelopment project is a multi-phase project that will transform all aspects of the hospital and increase the number of beds by about 50 per cent.
Learn more about the project on our website.
Interested in working with Stacey and the team at Royal Columbian? Visit our careers page.
