Richmond home to new urgent and primary care centre as of late-April

An urgent and primary care centre (UPCC) will be replacing a temporary location next week to connect people in Richmond with “quality same-day, everyday health care when they need it,” the minister of health announced Wednesday. 

The Richmond City Centre UPCC at 110-4671 No. 3 Rd opens on April 25. It’s the 28th UPCC location announced by the province. 

For people with non-life-threatening conditions, but need to see a doctor within 12 to 24 hours, the UPCC will provide urgent primary care.

“The centre will be full service, including on-site and outpatient access to X-ray services. The health-care team at the permanent site will be made up of approximately 33 full-time-equivalent health-care workers, including family physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses and a social worker,” a statement reads. 

Urgent care will be available Monday to Saturday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Statutory holidays will follow the same service hours.

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Staff at the Richmond City Centre UPCC will work with the Richmond Division of Family Practice to help patients find a regular primary care provider. 

“It will provide ongoing wraparound care for unattached patients while they arrange for patients to be connected to other local practices for their longitudinal care,” the statement adds.

“I’m excited that many people and their families living in Richmond will have better access to team-based care, including mental health and addictions,” Aman Singh, MLA for Richmond-Queensborough, said. “It’s also important that they get attached to a primary care provider if they do not have one.”

Long-term primary care services are expected to begin by fall 2022 and will be available Monday to Sunday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The province says services will include “allied health services,” like social work, dieticians and mental-health supports, as well as medical diagnostics.

“People in need of support for complex and chronic conditions, including mental-health and substance use supports, will have better access to the right care from the right provider with improved connections to specialized services provided by the health authority, particularly opioid agonist treatment,” the statement from the province reads.