Royal Alexandra Hospital Master Plan

The Royal Alexandra Hospital, Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital and CapitalCare Norwood and their programs and services - are critical parts of the health infrastructure in this province, particularly to the Edmonton and the north.

Every day, hundreds of patients receive wonderful care and treatment at the Royal Alexandra Hospital campus. But it has also become increasingly apparent that the campus, including the RAH, needs some significant care and attention as well.

As provider of health services, it is our responsibility to plan for the future health needs of Edmonton Zone residents and those referred to the Edmonton Zone for health services. This means we need to plan for the services, resources and physical structures to ensure we meet current and future health needs.

A Master Plan for the Royal Alexandra Hospital campus is expected to be completed in November, and will provide us with a comprehensive plan to address the ongoing and future program, service and infrastructure needs for the site.

The Master Plan is the result of several months of engagement and discussions with staff, physicians, volunteers and external stakeholders.

It outlines the infrastructure and service changes required at the RAH campus, using the Edmonton 2030 Plan as a foundational framework.

The plan takes into account projected population growth and includes a Needs Assessment for the communities served by the RAH campus.

Moving forward, the Master Plan will help guide decisions on the future of the campus. The completed plan will also be used to guide AHS and the Government of Alberta in making decisions around capital funding, taking into account the needs across the province.

A number of factors, including available capital funding, will influence which parts of the plan will ultimately be implemented.

As part of the Master Planning process a Needs Assessment has been completed for the campus. Highlights from the Needs Assessment include:

• The need for major renovation or demolition of nine of the 20 buildings across the three sites.
• The need for 435,200 Building Gross Square Meters, or 4.6 million Building Gross Square Feet, and 1,849 beds to accommodate 157 programs on the campus.
• Bed increases from around 1,115 beds (of which about 900 are currently in use), to 1,174 at the RAH, and from 244 to 325 at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital.
• A plan to proceed in four phases over 16 years at a cost of $4.479 billion.
• A recommendation to proceed with Phase 1 and 2 over the next 10 years at a cost of $2.75 billion.
• Phases 1 and 2 include:
  • Construction of a Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMH) building to consolidate Youth and Adolescent Mental Health from the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital and Royal Alexandra Hospital, and Youth Addiction and Mental Health beds from Alberta Hospital and Yellowhead Youth Centre and RAH (approx 100 beds);
  • Construction of a Clinical Services Centre to house programs/services decanted from buildings to be demolished;
  • Construction of an Acute Care Tower at the RAH (approx 800 beds, including 64 additional rehabilitation beds to support the Glenrose until a Glenrose South Tower is built as part of phase 3);
  • Phase 1 renovations to the Active Treatment Centre and Diagnostic Treatment Centre for low intensity care spaces/education/offices/on-call rooms.

AHS will work with the Alberta Government to determine which parts of the Master Plan will be implemented within the context of the plans and needs of other facilities in the zone and the province.

Information on in-person Master Plan update meetings for staff, physicians and volunteers will be shared as soon as possible.

Regardless of the scope and complexity of this project, it is important to note that quality patient care, and meeting the needs of our patients and families in safe, secure environments are a priority for AHS and the founding principles of our Master Plans.