The Stuart Lake Hospital Project resulted in development of a new Fort St. James Health Centre to serve Fort St. James and surrounding area including First Nations communities of the Takla Lake First Nation, Tl’azt’en Nation, Binche Whut’en First Nation, Nak’azdli Whut’en, and Yekooche First Nation.
- Triple the size of the existing facility (approximately 6,300 square feet), the new hospital will model excellence in health care, incorporating modern best practices and standards, as well as bringing multiple health services under one roof. The new hospital will improve the healing environment and provide culturally-safe care for residents of Fort St. James, surrounding areas, and local Indigenous communities.The new hospital will feature:
- 27 beds: 18 community care and 9 acute care
- An emergency department with two treatment rooms, a trauma bay, and a covered ambulance bay
- A Primary Care Centre, consolidating services currently offered in Fort St. James to one location
- Expanded laboratory and diagnostic imaging
- An in-house Spiritual Space and Gathering Space
- Larger space for palliative care, including a palliative care lounge and garden
- Culturally and medicinally significant landscaping with outdoor spaces and gardens developed in collaboration with local Indigenous Elders and plant experts
- Construction of 85 parking stalls, greatly increasing parking capacity
The Northern Health Authority is one of six health authorities established by the provincial government to administer healthcare services in British Columbia. The Authority serves close to 300,000 residents, of whom 19.3 percent are of Indigenous descent, the highest concentration in any health authority within B.C. throughout 12 census communities. This region also includes 54 First Nations communities, and numerous unincorporated areas.
