Third urgent primary healthcare centre in Metro Vancouver to open in North Vancouver

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      A new health centre will help improve access to urgent, non-emergency healthcare for residents on the North Shore.  

      B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix announced on August 8 that the new North Vancouver Urgent and Primary Care Centre (UPCC) will open in North Vancouver in September.

      It will be the third UPCC announced for Metro Vancouver and the tenth centre in B.C.

      The centre is located on the second floor of 221 Esplanade West (close to the Lonsdale Quay transit hub) in North Vancouver and will be operated by Vancouver Coastal Health, partnered by the B.C. Ministry of Health, the North Shore Division of Family Practice, and Seymour Health Group, with support from the Squamish Nation and the Tsleil-Waututh Nation.

      One of its purposes is to provide care for all North Shore residents (including North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Bowen Island, and Lions Bay) with non-life-threatening conditions who need to see a provider within 12 to 24 hours but don’t require emergency treatment.

      Its second purpose is to connect patients to a regular primary care provider (with the North Shore Divion of Family Practice) and ongoing care for unattached patients on an interim basis.

      Over 35,000 patient visits each year are expected by 2023 and new clinical staff will include over 14 full-time practitioners, including general practitioners, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, and social workers.

      After on-site renovations are completed, it will be operational and welcome patients by mid- to late-September.

      The first Vancouver UPCC—City Centre Urgent Primary Care Centre on the ground floor of 1290 Hornby Street between St. Paul's Hospital and Vancouver General Hospital—opened in the West End in November 2018.

      The second, East Vancouver's REACH UPCC at 1145 Commercial Drive, will provide some services early this month and will be fully operational by October.

      You can follow Craig Takeuchi on Twitter at @cinecraig or on Facebook

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