MLA Jackie Tegart and B.C. Minister of Health Terry Lake were among guests for Hillside Psychiatric Centre's birthday.
(BRENDAN KERGIN / iNFOnews.ca)
March 12, 2016 - 11:30 AM
KAMLOOPS - The Hillside Psychiatric Centre has celebrated it’s 10th birthday.
The centre has seen admitted 1,538 patients over that decade and Dave Harrhy with the Interior Health mental health program says over the last year the centre saw 286 patients, which is higher than average.
“That’s a good thing because it means our length of stay is decreasing,” he says. “The average is 90 days, so that’s phenomenal.”
According to Harrhy past psychiatric centres saw patients stay for much longer.
“Historically at Riverview it wasn’t unusual for people to stay there for literally years,” he says. “Seeing more patients is a good thing. It’s not an indication of increased demand but rather our ability to serve more people.”
He says Hillside is considered a leader across the country in psychiatric care and work.
B.C. health minister Terry Lake and Fraser Nicola MLA Jackie Tegart were among the guests at the birthday celebration. Lake says the centre has been important in providing care for people who need specialized care and social support..
“It’s a long term rehabilitation health facility where people can be supported, and supported closer to their families,” Lake says. “It is with a real sense of pride that we look at Hillside.”
The centre has 47 beds for patients for a variety of programs, including a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit, and specializes in neuropsychiatry.
To contact a reporter for this story, email Brendan Kergin at bkergin@infonews.ca or call 250-819-6089. To contact an editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2016