The Village of Delburne has a clinic space for the first time in 60-plus years.
More than 50 people recently attended a grand opening ceremony for the Delburne Medical Centre, a joint-venture between the Village of Delburne, Red Deer County and Dr. Muti Kauchali.
“We have already seen local patients who are quite sick. Many did not have a family doctor and so they waited and the situation would get worse. This new clinic will make a real difference in the lives of many in the community,” said Kauchali, who has been a medical doctor for 24 years and lives in Sylvan Lake.
The facility began seeing patients in January. Construction on the project began last March.
“It has been great to work with such a supportive community that will pull together to make a project like this happen. I am so thankful to everyone who has played a part in this project,” Kauchali said.
In the first three weeks of operation, the clinic had 444 patients registered, 74 per cent of whom are Delburne residents. Half of the patients registered did not have a regular family doctor.
Some registered patients reported they travel more than an hour to come to the clinic, citing difficulty finding a family doctor in Red Deer County.
Residents of Red Deer County, including Delburne, Elnora, Lousana and Pine Lake will be served by the facility.
The Delburne Medical Centre provides dedicated clinic spaces, a pharmacy, allied medical spaces, meeting spaces and a dedicated ambulance transfer bay. The clinic space includes eight exam/consultation rooms, a procedure room as well as dedicated administrative spaces. Allied health services, such as home care nursing, are planned operate right in the clinic.
The facility was built to meet modern medical standards and fully equipped with the latest advances in medical equipment and fully computerized. The centre is located on the village’s main street and supports the village’s main street revitalization strategy.
Alberta Foot Care and Respiratory Homecare Solutions both had representatives on site during the grand opening to talk about how residents could take advantage of services based in Delburne.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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