Construction has begun on the new Rocky Mountain House Health Care Centre.
In an announcement Wednesday, the province said construction will include a new operating room, additional recovery rooms and new patient support areas.
The project is expected to be completed in the Spring of 2024 and is expected to create about 80 jobs.
There is currently just one operating room at the health care centre, where about 150 procedures are completed each month. The addition of the new operating room is expected to double the capacity.
“Adding a new operating room at Rocky Mountain House Health Centre means doubling the surgery capacity so more Albertans in this community and surrounding ones will get their surgeries sooner and closer to home,” said Jason Copping, Minister of Health.
“We have committed $133 million over three years so hospitals across the province can put resources in place to build and expand operating rooms and work to reduce surgery wait times.”
The health centre serves the town’s permanent population of about 6,650 as well as the regional population of about 21,000.
“Lowering surgical wait times and increasing access to health care in Rocky Mountain House will help strengthen our community,” said Debbie Baich Rocky Mountain House Mayor.
“I would like to express my gratitude to the provincial government for this long-needed improvement.”
The new health care centre is part of a budget 2022 commitment by the provincial government that provides $133 million over three years to expand and build new operating rooms in hospitals across the province, including in Calgary, Edmonton, Edson, Grande Prairie, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat and Rocky Mountain House.
In a release, the province also pointed out that Alberta Health Services aims to schedule an additional 1,350 surgeries in the Central zone, ranging from hip and knee to general surgeries, by inviting chartered surgical facilities to submit proposals.