Richmond Hospital

Richmond Hospital
Vancouver Coastal Health Authority
Richmond Hospital
Geography
Location Richmond, British Columbia, Canada
Organization
Care system Public Medicare (Canada) (MSP)
Hospital type Community, Urban, Teaching
Affiliated university UBC Faculty of Medicine
Services
Emergency department Yes
Beds 175
History
Founded 1966
Links
Website http://www.vch.ca/facilities/hospitals/richmond.htm
Lists Hospitals in Canada

Richmond Hospital (RH) is a medical facility located in Richmond, British Columbia. The Vancouver Coastal Health Authority (VCH) is responsible for Richmond Health Services and Richmond Hospital.

Contents

History

Richmond Hospital first opened February 26, 1966 with 132 beds. It was first known as Richmond General Hospital. The first patient was admitted and the first baby was born in the hospital on March 17, 1966. The original building is now known as the "North Tower"; the "South Tower" was completed in 1980. In 1992 Richmond General Hospital was rebranded as "The Richmond Hospital" while the Minoru Residence extended care facility was opened two years later.

In 1997 the Westminster Health Centre building was opened to house administration, psychiatry and ambulatory care. The same year the hospital was amalgamated with the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board. In 1999, due to space opened up by opening the Westminster building, the Emergency Department and Diagnostic Imaging were considerably expanded.

The Vancouver/Richmond Health Board was re-structured to become part of the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, which includes "Richmond Health Services" as the local umbrella organization. The hospital is currently part of Richmond Health Services and now known simply as "Richmond Hospital" (without the "The").

Facilities and amenities

RH is the only hospital in Richmond, British Columbia and is located close to Vancouver International Airport. It is a large urban community teaching hospital with 175 beds.[1] It is affiliated with the University of British Columbia. The Emergency Department is open 24/7 and sees 45,000 patients annually.

RH is located on the Southeast corner of Westminster Highway and Gilbert Road. It serves the people of Richmond but also those from neighbouring communities and frequently patients coming from the nearby international airport. RH can provide most of the medical and surgical care for its patients. Some patients requiring highly specialized care would need to be transferred to tertiary care facilities in Vancouver. These include Vancouver General Hospital, St. Paul's Hospital, British Columbia's Children's Hospital and BC Women's Hospital and Health Centre.

Diagnostic imaging includes x-ray, CT scan, ultrasound, nuclear medicine and MRI.

In addition to an established inpatient psychiatry unit and outpatient psychiatry services, a Psychiatric Emergency Unit was completed in March 2009 for short-term admission of psychiatric patients in crisis.

In September 2009, the new $6.5 million birth centre opened.[2] It features 15 private maternity care rooms, a six-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and a maternity-specific operating room and recovery area.

On April 8, 2009 the provincial government announced a $10 million upgrade package for RH. These renovations were completed in April, 2011 and include a 2,000-square-foot (190 m2) expansion and upgrade to the Emergency Department ($4.9 million), expansion of ambulatory surgical services ($2.9 million) and an expansion and upgrade of the Sterile Processing Department ($2.4 million).

Non-medical amenities and enhancements include a large atrium inside the main entrance where one can find a Starbuck's and a gift shop. There is a cafeteria on the second floor. There are several well-maintained gardens on the hospital property. The hospital is right beside Minoru Park which has many foot paths, trees and several small lakes.

Services

External links

References

  1. ^ "Richmond Hospital page", VCH website
  2. ^ "Hospital celebrates birth of new maternity centre", Richmond Review, September 11, 2009.