VANCOUVER—St. Paul’s Hospital is going to move.
After more than 120 years in downtown Vancouver’s west end, the Catholic acute care centre has announced a new facility will be built on Station Street in Vancouver near the Via Rail terminal and the Main Street SkyTrain Station.
“The major factor was ensuring that we’re around for another 120 years,” said Dianne Doyle, president and CEO of Providence Health Care.
Doyle expects the $1 billion project will take seven years. She said the seismic preparedness of the current St. Paul’s Hospital buildings has been a big concern.
“We know the local community would rely on St. Paul’s in a major disaster, including an earthquake,” but without an $80 million seismic upgrade, the aging hospital would suffer serious damage.
Once St. Paul’s moves, the old site will no longer be a hospital. Doyle guessed most of the buildings at the Burrard location will be torn down, with the exception of structures with heritage value.
“We need to talk to the local community and to Vancouver Coastal Health Authority to determine what the community needs that should be provided in the west end,” she said.
The Sisters of Providence from Montreal established St. Paul’s Hospital in 1894. Doyle confirmed that the centre’s Catholic legacy will move with it.
“The commitment to the Catholic tradition continues regardless of the site that we’re on. (The new location) positions Providence and Catholic health care in a very strong way in the local community and through the entire province.”
The hospital is a destination for heart, lung, and kidney care for patients across the province and is home to the well-known B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS.
The new location will include 24/7 primary care, chronic disease management, mental health and addictions programs, a low-risk birthing centre, end of life care, and community outreach programs.
