SHA to offer guided tours of new Sask Hospital in late October

Oct 12, 2018 | 10:43 AM

The Saskatchewan Health Authority is planning a sneak peek of the new Sask Hospital in late October.

Tours will start on October 22 and run through to the 26, and then again from the 29 through to November 2. The public will have the opportunity to tour the 284-bed provincial psychiatric facility prior to patients and staff moving in around mid-November. Linda Lewis, communications officer with the Saskatchewan Health Authority, told battlefordsNOW what the public will see.

“It’s a walking tour, and will take around an hour,” Lewis said. “It’s going to feature some of the highlights of the hospital including one of the patient wards, some specialized therapy areas, the education and business centres, cafeteria, courtyard areas, the gymnasium and multi-use space, the health care clinic and so much more.”

Tour times are Monday through Friday during the two weeks, in 15-minute intervals. Lewis says spots are going to be hard to come by once the tours begin.

“Advanced signup is required for all of the tours,” she said. “We’d like to see a maximum of 10 people on each tour, but we can accommodate just a few more. They can email us at newshnbtours@saskhealthauthority.ca to sign up.”

The new Saskatchewan Hospital will be replacing the current 156-bed facility, with a total of 188 beds. A 96-bed secure wing will also provide mental health services for males and females with serious mental health issues. Lewis says the change will be welcomed by everyone.

“They’re going to see how much of a change this new facility is from the current one that served at the hospital for the last 105 years,” she said. “It’s a beautiful, bright, modern, state of the art facility. We are very excited about it for patients and staff. We really hope the public is as thrilled with it as I know our staff and patients already are.”

The tour will include the main and second floors of the building, and no food or drinks are allowed on the tour. Lewis has been in the building and says the new facility is an incredible sight.

“I’ve been in the building many times over the past three years through its various stages of construction,” she said. “It’s been quite extraordinary to see it take shape. It’s a massive structure and it’s well worth coming to see.”

 

— Editors note: This story was amended to correct the email address for tour bookings. It previously read newshanbtours@saskhealthauthority.ca, when it should have read newshnbtours@saskhealthauthority.ca. We apologize for the error.

brady.lang@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @BradyLangCJNB