Burnaby Hospital redevelopment moves forward

The redevelopment of Burnaby Hospital has marked a milestone with the completion of the structural building and concrete pouring.

Health Minister Adrian Dix announced on Friday that phase one of the project is “behind us” and that “people in Burnaby are one step closer to expanding patient care.”

“We are marking an important milestone of the new six-storey phase one pavilion of the Burnaby Hospital redevelopment project,” said Dix. “It’s exciting to see the progress as this project will support our ongoing work to strengthen health care in British Columbia and provide people in Burnaby and the surrounding communities improved access to care in a modern hospital.”

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He says completion of the structural work means the focus will now shift to finishing the building’s exterior and interior.

Phase one of the redevelopment plan includes the construction of the new pavilion and the expansion of the existing support facility buildings. Dix says that this will include maternity, neonatal intensive care, mental health and medical inpatient units.

He adds the support facility buildings include the Jim Pattison Surgery Centre and the Burnaby Community Emergency Department.

“You’ll see the development of this project when you have an outstanding hospital, one that has improved its outcomes, even in facilities that are less than ideal … the improvement in the last number of years led by the medical staff has been exceptional here,” said Dix.

The new pavilion is expected to be complete by 2025.

“People in Burnaby know how fast our community is growing and how more services are needed to keep up with demand and this includes access to public health care,” Anne Kang, MLA for Burnaby-Deer Lake, said Friday.

She says the developments are important as “this hospital is not just for Burnaby, it is also for Vancouver.”

Friday’s announcement comes after phase–two plans of the redevelopment were approved.

Dix explains this new phase will include a 150-bed inpatient tower and integrated cancer centre. The cancer centre will have “54 ambulatory care rooms, 31 chemotherapy chairs, space for five linear accelerators, space for two PET/CT scanners, an oncology pharmacy, and clinical trials and research space.”

The project will result in 399 beds across the campus.

“I am pleased to celebrate this significant project milestone at Burnaby Hospital, which has been the heart of health care in this community for over 70 years,” said Victoria Lee, president and CEO of Fraser Health.

“This redevelopment will add capacity to our hospital and bring in state-of-the-art equipment, enabling our staff and medical staff to provide high-quality care to our patients for many years to come. Thank you to our staff and medical staff who are epitomizing agility and innovation as they move this work forward.”

Burnaby Hospital opened in 1952 and provides a range of acute care services, such as emergency care, critical care, maternity, neonatal intensive care, palliative, adult mental-health, and substance-use services.

“Burnaby has grown to be the third largest community in B.C. and it’s one of the most diverse communities as well. Our hospital has grown in the seven decades — this will be the most important and pivotal milestone growth that we’ll see,” Lee said.

“We have engaged with our community partners and Indigenous partners to ensure that the experience that people have in our health-care setting is reflective of that cultural diversity and humility.”

The total cost of the redevelopment is projected to be more than $2.4 billion, the government says. Funding will be provided from the province of B.C., Burnaby Hospital Foundation, and BC Cancer Foundation.

-With files from James Paracy