Prairie Mountain Health and Shared Health provided some clarity on Thursday night in a town hall meeting after last month's devastating flood shuttered the Dauphin Regional Health Centre.
Uzoma Asagwara, Manitoba's Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care, was among those who toured the DRHC on Thursday ahead of the virtual meeting.
She said it was genuinely jaw-dropping to see what the flood has done to a health centre beloved by the community and a central hub for care.
"We did the math on this, when you look at about 45,000 square feet of that lower level of the hospital, water got up to about five feet throughout the entirety of it," said Asagwara. "That's over six million litres of water that has been pumped out of that site. That's just a phenomenal, phenomenal effort to remove that water."
More than 90 staff are on-site daily remediating, draining water, cleaning up, assessing, and evaluating. Simply put, it's been all-hands on deck.
Asagwara said lab services and a temporary outpatient clinic will be set up in the provincial building in Dauphin by the end of next week.
"So I'm talking about point-of-care testing, EKGs, X-rays, phlebotomy; these are going to be stood up in your community," said Asagwara. "We were given a timeline later in August, but we have pushed very hard and worked with your leaders to move that timeline up."
Asagwara admits that is a very aggressive timeline to have them set up by the end of next week.
"But we know that we need to meet the moment and move these timelines as quickly as we can," she added. "So that your providers can do what they do best, and that's take care of Manitobans. And so that residents and community members can get the care they need right at home."
Asagwara added they're working on getting a firm timeline on a mobile CT scanner. Asagwara met with doctors and nurses and gave them plenty of praise.
"These folks are not only experts in clinical care, but I have to say, they're starting to develop some expertise in disaster response," added Asagwara. "They've got some great ideas about what we can do by working together to stand up more capacity right in Dauphin."
They're currently looking at mobile CT options and modular capacity.
"We're really thinking well outside the box because an unprecedented challenge means we have to think about unprecedented solutions," continued Asagwara. "That's what we're willing to do. That's the approach our government will be taking every step of the way."
Asagwara knows there is a tremendous amount of work ahead, but it's important to note that a lot has been accomplished in a short amount of time. Treena Slate, CEO of Prairie Mountain Health, added that recovering from the extensive damage is more complicated than cleaning and drying spaces.
When it comes to the expansion of other possible services, such as maternity care and an emergency room, every option is being evaluated while restoration work continues.
In the meantime, the Ste. Rose and Grandview Emergency Departments have expanded their hours and capabilities.
