BY AMAN SINGH, MLA for Richmond-Queensborough,
KELLY GREENE, MLA for Richmond-Steveston, &
HENRY YAO, MLA for Richmond South Centre
RICHMOND is a rapidly growing city and our need for quality, accessible health care has been growing right along with our population. That’s why as your MLAs, we are excited to announce that the redevelopment of Richmond Hospital is moving forward. With the approval of the business case for the project, we’re one step closer to the bigger, state-of-the-art hospital tower that we need.
Whether you’re getting diagnostic tests, undergoing surgery, or need emergency care in a crisis, you deserve expert care at your local hospital. The new tower will include an intensive care unit and a fully equipped medical imaging department, as well as a new pediatric unit and surgical suite. Updated facilities and equipment will mean better care for you and your family when you need it most.
It’s been clear for many years that Richmond needed a new hospital tower to keep up with our city’s population growth. But the BC Liberal MLAs who represented Richmond failed to move this project forward. For 16 years, the BC Liberals took our community for granted and refused to improve healthcare here.
That’s one of the reasons that people in Richmond made a different choice in last year’s election. And now they’re getting different results, and quickly. With three BC New Democrat MLAs working for the people of Richmond, our hospital is being expanded so we finally get the healthcare we deserve.
With such a significant project, we needed to get it right. We made sure that the new patient care tower would not only meet the city’s current needs but accommodate future growth as well. That’s why we expanded the original concept plan. Our government’s $820.8 million investment into Richmond Hospital will include more space, more beds, and more services for people.
The new acute care tower will include 113 new beds, for a total of 353 beds in the hospital, as well as a new, expanded emergency department. That means less time spent waiting and more time getting the care you and your family deserve, in a modern facility.
The people who work in our health care system – nurses, doctors, technicians, care aides and other professionals – are dedicated and resilient. They have made incredible sacrifices to keep us safe from COVID-19 this year, reminding us just how much we rely on their expertise.
These hard-working people deserve modern, efficient spaces in which to do their jobs. The new nine-story tower, with double the floor space of the initial proposal, will allow health care workers to care for people safely and effectively.
This expanded hospital will be a state-of-the-art facility, ensuring people in Richmond can get the quality health care they deserve, now and into the future.
