SHA welcomes significant expansion of acute care capacity at Saskatoon City Hospital
The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) welcomes the announcement by the Government of Saskatchewan of a $15 million investment to add 109 acute care beds at Saskatoon City Hospital (SCH). Saskatoon’s health facilities serve as tertiary hospitals, providing health services to patients across the province, and have experienced increasing capacity pressures driven by population growth and increased demand for health services. This investment will significantly support the SHA’s ongoing actions to address these capacity pressures by increasing acute capacity in Saskatoon by 14% for patients from across the province accessing these important health services.
Building on the previous $30 million commitment from the Government of Saskatchewan in the 2024-25 budget, this investment supports the SHA’s ongoing efforts to address capacity pressures in Saskatoon and Regina through the Provincial Capacity Pressure Action Plans. These efforts have already resulted in the addition of more than 380 full-time equivalent positions and over 220 long-term care, transitional care, convalescent care, and acute care beds in Saskatoon and Regina.
"The Saskatchewan Health Authority is thankful for the Government of Saskatchewan's investment to significantly expand acute care capacity at Saskatoon City Hospital, which will directly address capacity pressures in Saskatoon," said SHA CEO Andrew Will. "The SHA is moving quickly to operationalize this expanded capacity over the next 12 to 16 months, including recruiting over 500 additional staff and physicians, transitioning select outpatient and continuing care services currently in SCH to community settings, and making necessary facility renovations to significantly expand acute care capacity for patients across the province accessing care in Saskatoon."
Over the next 12 to 16 months, the SHA will implement an aggressive plan to implement this expanded acute care capacity at SCH. This includes adding 22 Acute Rehabilitation beds, 12 Acquired Brain Injury beds, 60 inpatient general medicine beds and 15 High Acuity beds. To facilitate this expansion, SHA will be hiring more than 500 additional staff and physicians, renovating areas of the hospital, and transitioning some outpatient and continuing care services currently in SCH into existing SHA capacity or commercial space in the community.
By increasing acute care space in Saskatoon, emergency departments can admit patients more efficiently, reducing patient wait times for hospital admission and ensuring patients receive the right care in the right care setting. This initiative is one component of the broader strategy to optimize hospital space, improve patient flow, and enhance access to critical services for patients from all over Saskatchewan.
“Each and every day, physicians, nurses, paramedics, and other support staff provide high-quality patient care in our emergency departments, often under difficult circumstances caused by capacity pressures and increasingly complex patient needs,” said John Ash, Vice-President of Integrated Saskatoon Health with the SHA. “We are incredibly grateful for their dedication, resilience, and commitment to patient care. This expansion of acute care capacity will benefit both patients and our emergency department and inpatient teams by ensuring patients receive the right care in the right care setting.”
The Saskatchewan Health Authority is deeply grateful for the dedication of our health-care providers working through pressures and implementing meaningful solutions that address capacity challenges in Saskatoon.
Read more in the Government of Saskatchewan's news release: Investing in Capital Upgrades and Operational Efficiencies at Saskatoon City Hospital