New space being dedicated for specialized care to stroke patients at Health Sciences Centre

It’s being called the first of its kind in Manitoba. Over 18,000 sq. ft of space at Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre is being dedicated to providing specialized care to stroke patients.

“It’s exciting to get to see what Manitobans are going to be able to experience after navigating a health situation, for many families, is very scary and the outcomes can be varied,” said Uzoma Asagwara, Health, Seniors, and Long-Term Care Minister.

The new unit takes up the fourth and fifth floors at the former Women’s Pavilion. The space will be starting with 12 beds, but HSC is looking to hire more staff to increase bed capacity to 28.

According to Dr. Shawn Young, HSC’s Chief Operating Officer, the renovation took over a year.

“There were a lot of enhancements to the facility, a lot of single-patient rooms with lifts. There was a lot of infrastructure that was developed to support patients in a much better way,” said Dr. Young.

According to Heart and Stroke, approximately 3,500 Manitobans suffer a stroke every year. The first-of-its-kind unit in the province will allow for centralized care for stroke patients.

“Right now, there’s stroke patients in different parts of the hospital and now they’re going to be in this best practice environment,” said Christine Houde, Heart & Stroke Director, Health Policy & Systems, Manitoba.

The hospital anticipates it will take several months before enough staff can run the unit at full capacity.

“From a nursing perspective, we will hire approximately 16 to 18 more nurses and allied health and support staff as well,” said Treena Bilous, Manager of the Acute Stroke Unit, HSC.

The space includes single beds, an occupational therapy kitchen that assesses a patient’s mobility, and a gym space that allows patients to be connected with physiotherapists within hours of a stroke.

According to hospital officials, other jurisdictions outside of the province were analyzed in creating the unit.

“Edmonton and Calgary had a stroke unit ahead of us, but none of these stroke units had the features that we have today. Our stroke unit has been well occupied with the most updated equipment,” said Sadik Ghrooda, Neurologist at the Health Sciences Centre.

The space will be ready to accept patients Monday.

“I think one area we still need to do some work on is rehabilitation services in rural and remote areas,” said Houde. “That’s certainly a gap across the board. I think that’s an area we can continue to work together with Shared Health and strengthen that part of our coordinated stroke system.”