New emergency department opens
June 15, 2010
Calgary hospital improving patient care and comfort
Alberta Health Services is improving patient care and comfort with the opening of Rockyview General Hospital’s new emergency department.
Take a Video Tour: Rockyview's New Emergency Department
The $26-million capital project, located in the Calgary hospital’s new south addition, provides more space in treatment and waiting areas, more privacy for patients and the latest in health-care technology.
Alberta Health Minister Gene Zwozdesky and AHS Board Chair Ken Hughes were among the dignitaries at the department’s ceremonial opening on June 15. Its first patients will be received starting at 6 a.m. on June 16.
“The hospital’s old emergency department was designed to handle 100 patients a day but accommodating more than twice that number,” says Debbie Goulard, the hospital’s director of Emergency. 
“Our new emergency department is larger and will reduce overcrowding during periods of high demand. Being in an emergency department can be stressful for patients and their families. I think our brighter, more spacious department will make them more comfortable while they await and receive treatment.”
Besides more space, the 4,970-square-metre department also provides patients with improved privacy and the latest medical equipment.
The 46 treatment spaces — divided by walls, not curtains — are large enough to accommodate families. Many of the spaces receive direct or indirect sunlight, and each one has a hand-washing sink for infection prevention and control.
All three resuscitation rooms have overhead X-ray capability, a cardiac monitor, thermometer, blood pressure cuff and oxygen saturation monitor so health providers can respond quickly when every second counts.
Individuals in mental health crisis can be cared for and monitored in a dedicated, secure environment that ensures safety for everyone in the hospital.
There are also five isolation rooms, three trauma bays, six ambulance bays and a new helipad.
“We have an exemplary staff who provide patients the highest-quality health care,” says emergency manager Mary Baines.
“The new department gives them the room and resources to do what they do best. I’m confident southern Albertans who visit our emergency department will be pleased with the new space and, of course, pleased with the care they receive.”
About 70,000 patients visit the Rockyview emergency department every year and that number continues to grow.
