Foothills Medical Centre
Encyclopedia
Foothills Medical Centre (FMC) is the largest hospital
in Alberta
, Canada
and is located in the City of Calgary
. It is one of Canada's most recognized medical facilities and is one of the leading hospitals in Alberta, providing advanced healthcare services to over two million people from Calgary, Southern Alberta
, southeastern British Columbia
, and southern Saskatchewan
. Formerly operated by the Calgary Health Region
, it is now under the authority of Alberta Health Services
.
The main building of the hospital was opened in June 1966. It was originally named 'Foothills Provincial General Hospital' and later known simply as Foothills Hospital. With the addition of other medical facilities, it became known by its present name.
The Foothills Medical Centre is an accredited tertiary trauma centre by the Trauma Association of Canada and is the largest regional trauma centre in Southern Alberta. The FMC works in conjunction with the nearby University of Calgary
for the purposes of educating students as well as providing facilities for medical research. It is physically attached to the University of Calgary Medical Centre
(UCMC) as well as the Special Services Building (where most other medical services are provided) and the Tom Baker Cancer Centre
, which was renamed the "Cancer Centre", and is a leading centre in Alberta for cancer treatment and research. The large site also includes the Grace Women's Health Centre, The Health Sciences Association of Alberta, as well as both the North Tower and South Tower, which offer many outpatient services. A new tower (TRW Building) was also added to the Health Sciences building, which was completed in late 2005.
The neighbouring Alberta Children's Hospital
and west side of the University of Calgary campus are accessible from the FMC via the West Campus Boulevard bridge spanning over 16th Avenue (Trans-Canada Highway
). Additionally, the head office of the Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta
is housed on the 8th floor of the Foothills Medical Centre. Apart from these distinctions, FMC boasts the world's first and most powerful movable MRI machine, which was introduced in January 2009. It will help patients at the Foothills Medical Centre (FMC) receive the world’s safest, most accurate surgery possible. In addition, the world's first robotic surgery
was also performed on a patient at the FMC for a removal of a brain tumour
, which also created a landmark in Canadian medical history.
Currently, the hospital is undergoing a large expansion with the addition of the new McCaig Tower, which partially opened in October 2010. This new addition will include 93 inpatient beds, 36 bed intensive care unit, 21 short-stay beds (a total of 150 additional beds), as well as 8 operating rooms. Major renovations to the emergency department
are planned, and is expected to commence when the new tower is completed.
1958
1965
1966
2001
2006
2010
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
in Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and is located in the City of Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
. It is one of Canada's most recognized medical facilities and is one of the leading hospitals in Alberta, providing advanced healthcare services to over two million people from Calgary, Southern Alberta
Southern Alberta
Southern Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of the year 2004, the region's population was approximately 272,017. The primary cities are Lethbridge and Medicine Hat...
, southeastern British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, and southern Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
. Formerly operated by the Calgary Health Region
Calgary Health Region
Calgary Health Region was formerly the governing body for healthcare regulation in an area of the Canadian province of Alberta. It was amalgamated with other regional health authorities in 2008 to become part of Alberta Health Services...
, it is now under the authority of Alberta Health Services
Alberta Health Services
Alberta Health Services is the province-wide organization responsible for providing hospital and other health care in the Canadian province of Alberta. Known as the "superboard", it was created in May 2008, with the abolition of nine previous regional health authorities, the Alberta Mental Health...
.
The main building of the hospital was opened in June 1966. It was originally named 'Foothills Provincial General Hospital' and later known simply as Foothills Hospital. With the addition of other medical facilities, it became known by its present name.
The Foothills Medical Centre is an accredited tertiary trauma centre by the Trauma Association of Canada and is the largest regional trauma centre in Southern Alberta. The FMC works in conjunction with the nearby University of Calgary
University of Calgary
The University of Calgary is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1966 the U of C is composed of 14 faculties and more than 85 research institutes and centres.More than 25,000 undergraduate and 5,500 graduate students are currently...
for the purposes of educating students as well as providing facilities for medical research. It is physically attached to the University of Calgary Medical Centre
Faculty of Medicine of the University of Calgary
The Faculty of Medicine of the University of Calgary is one of two medical schools in Alberta and one of 17 in Canada. Established in 1967, the school is linked to the hospitals in Alberta Health Services -- Calgary ZoneCalgary Health Region...
(UCMC) as well as the Special Services Building (where most other medical services are provided) and the Tom Baker Cancer Centre
Tom Baker Cancer Centre
Tom Baker Cancer Centre, renamed The Cancer Centre, is a tertiary care facility for Southern Alberta, and is located in Calgary, Alberta. It is a leading Cancer Centre in Alberta for prevention, research and treatment programs and provides many advanced medical services, as well as supportive care...
, which was renamed the "Cancer Centre", and is a leading centre in Alberta for cancer treatment and research. The large site also includes the Grace Women's Health Centre, The Health Sciences Association of Alberta, as well as both the North Tower and South Tower, which offer many outpatient services. A new tower (TRW Building) was also added to the Health Sciences building, which was completed in late 2005.
Alberta Children's Hospital
Alberta Children's Hospital is the largest public hospital for sick children in the prairie provinces, and is located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is operated by Alberta Health Services - Calgary Health Region. The new facility opened on September 27, 2006 and is the first free-standing...
and west side of the University of Calgary campus are accessible from the FMC via the West Campus Boulevard bridge spanning over 16th Avenue (Trans-Canada Highway
Trans-Canada Highway
The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...
). Additionally, the head office of the Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta
Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta
The Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta is a partnership between the Calgary Health Region and the University of Calgary. Its mandate comprises all cardiovascular research, education and service delivery, with a service area extending from Saskatchewan, Southern Alberta and Eastern British...
is housed on the 8th floor of the Foothills Medical Centre. Apart from these distinctions, FMC boasts the world's first and most powerful movable MRI machine, which was introduced in January 2009. It will help patients at the Foothills Medical Centre (FMC) receive the world’s safest, most accurate surgery possible. In addition, the world's first robotic surgery
Robotic surgery
Robotic surgery, computer-assisted surgery, and robotically-assisted surgery are terms for technological developments that use robotic systems to aid in surgical procedures....
was also performed on a patient at the FMC for a removal of a brain tumour
Brain tumor
A brain tumor is an intracranial solid neoplasm, a tumor within the brain or the central spinal canal.Brain tumors include all tumors inside the cranium or in the central spinal canal...
, which also created a landmark in Canadian medical history.
Currently, the hospital is undergoing a large expansion with the addition of the new McCaig Tower, which partially opened in October 2010. This new addition will include 93 inpatient beds, 36 bed intensive care unit, 21 short-stay beds (a total of 150 additional beds), as well as 8 operating rooms. Major renovations to the emergency department
Emergency department
An emergency department , also known as accident & emergency , emergency room , emergency ward , or casualty department is a medical treatment facility specialising in acute care of patients who present without prior appointment, either by their own means or by ambulance...
are planned, and is expected to commence when the new tower is completed.
Current description
In addition to a 24-hour emergency room and inpatient care, FMC has 57 outpatient clinics on site. This facility provides comprehensive and specialized medical and surgical services to Calgary and Southern Alberta:- 25 bed intensive care unitIntensive Care Unitthumb|220px|ICU roomAn intensive-care unit , critical-care unit , intensive-therapy unit/intensive-treatment unit is a specialized department in a hospital that provides intensive-care medicine...
and 24 bed cardiac care unit - Trauma centre for Southern Alberta
- 18 operating theatres - including a specially designated trauma operating room
- High risk maternity and neonatal intensive care unit
- PARTY Program (Prevent Alcohol & Risk Related Trauma in Youth Program for Grade 9 secondary school students)
- PADIS (poison & drug information)
- Southern Alberta Renal Program
- Intraoperative MR - magnetic resonance systemMagnetic resonance imagingMagnetic resonance imaging , nuclear magnetic resonance imaging , or magnetic resonance tomography is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to visualize detailed internal structures...
(first of its kind in the world, located in the Seaman's Family MR Research Centre) - Stephenson Cardiac MR Centre - the leading cardiac magnetic resonance facility in Canada, as measured by number of peer-reviewed articles published, and part of the Libin Cardiovascular Institute of AlbertaLibin Cardiovascular Institute of AlbertaThe Libin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta is a partnership between the Calgary Health Region and the University of Calgary. Its mandate comprises all cardiovascular research, education and service delivery, with a service area extending from Saskatchewan, Southern Alberta and Eastern British...
- Multiple transplantation such as kidney, pancreas, corneal and tissue transplants.
- HOPE Program (Human Organ Procurement and Exchange)
- University of Calgary Medical Clinic (UCMC) clinics
Chronology of hospital projects
- Provincial and territorial hospital insurance plans. The Prime Minister of CanadaPrime Minister of CanadaThe Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
, John DiefenbakerJohn DiefenbakerJohn George Diefenbaker, PC, CH, QC was the 13th Prime Minister of Canada, serving from June 21, 1957, to April 22, 1963...
, declares federal grants are available to provincial hospital-care projects, 50 cents on the dollar financing, from OttawaGovernment of CanadaThe Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
.
1965
- Main building completed, Foothills Hospital.
- First school of nursing class begins study.
1966
- February, main Hospital Phase II complete.
- April, first out-patients and glaucomaGlaucomaGlaucoma is an eye disorder in which the optic nerve suffers damage, permanently damaging vision in the affected eye and progressing to complete blindness if untreated. It is often, but not always, associated with increased pressure of the fluid in the eye...
laboratoryLaboratoryA laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
.
- June, Foothills Hospital opens.
- During opening year, "Patient Care" booklet describes new hospital:
- "Largest completely new hospital of its kind constructed in North America; 765000 square feet (71,070.8 m²) of floor space; 2,000 rooms. PatientPatientA patient is any recipient of healthcare services. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, advanced practice registered nurse, veterinarian, or other health care provider....
capacity: 766 beds, 116 bassinetBassinetA bassinet or bassinette is a bed specifically for babies from birth to about four months, and small enough to provide a "cocoon" that small babies find comforting....
tes, 15 day care beds. Staff when the hospital is in full operation: 1,200-1,500. Cost: $21,000,000 for construction of hospital, School of NursingNursingNursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
and Power PlantPower stationA power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
— $5,000,000 for initial equipment. T-shaped hospital building, 12 storeys plus basement. The cross-piece of the T includes all nursing units. The back wing, or stem of the T, is 10 storeys high and includes all clinicClinicA clinic is a health care facility that is primarily devoted to the care of outpatients...
al and other service departments. A 100 bed auxiliary hospital is planned for later construction on site; also a 370 bed psychiatric hospital which will be operated under separate administration. Capital financing for construction was by the usual FederalCanadian federalismCanada is a federation with two distinct jurisdictions of political authority: the country-wide federal government and the ten regionally-based provincial governments. It also has three territorial governments in the far north, though these are subject to the federal government...
ProvincialProvinces and territories of CanadaThe provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
grantsGrant (money)Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...
plus a $17 million debentureDebentureA debenture is a document that either creates a debt or acknowledges it. In corporate finance, the term is used for a medium- to long-term debt instrument used by large companies to borrow money. In some countries the term is used interchangeably with bond, loan stock or note...
issue to be retired by the Provincial Government over a 20 year period. Operation costs will be met by the standard per diem payments made under Alberta Hospitalization BenefitsHospitalization Benefits PlanAlberta Hospitalization Benefits describes health law for the province of Alberta, Canada. Chapter 3, of the Hospitals Act, is the Hospitalization Benefits Plan, of the province of Alberta...
. Complete hospital control is vested in the board of Management."
- "Largest completely new hospital of its kind constructed in North America; 765000 square feet (71,070.8 m²) of floor space; 2,000 rooms. Patient
- PathologyPathologyPathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....
labs (medical laboratoryMedical laboratoryA medical laboratory or clinical laboratory is a laboratory where tests are done on clinical specimens in order to get information about the health of a patient as pertaining to the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease.-Departments:...
) begins using advanced equipment to provide a complete pathology service.
- Residence for 329 nursing students is linked as teaching hospital support of Foothills Hospital.
- Planning continues for 100-bed auxiliary hospital and 370 beds for psychiatric patients.
- 1966 to 2007 and beyond
- Hospital expands, largest hospital of the province of Alberta to be Foothills Medical Centre.
2001
- November, new 14-bed inpatient stroke unit, Unit 100.
2006
- October 19, as part of a C$1.7 billion expansion for Foothills Medical Centre the Calgary Health Region named the new tower the JR (Bud) McCaig Tower after well-known local philanthropist, Bud McCaigBud McCaigJohn Robert McCaig was a Canadian businessman and a co-owner of the Calgary Flames NHL franchise.Born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, McCaig dropped out of high school to become a truck driver, following in the footsteps of his father, John W...
. McCaig who had died in 2005 was the founder of Alberta Bone & Joint Health Institute.
2010
- C$460M 8-storey tower, JR (Bud) McCaig Tower.
- JR (Bud) McCaig Tower adds to largest hospital of province Alberta:
- 8 operating rooms
- 36-bed intensive care unit (only 25 beds funded)
- 93 inpatient beds
- 21 short-stay beds
- Diagnostic imagingMedical imagingMedical imaging is the technique and process used to create images of the human body for clinical purposes or medical science...
- Southern Alberta TissueTissue (biology)Tissue is a cellular organizational level intermediate between cells and a complete organism. A tissue is an ensemble of cells, not necessarily identical, but from the same origin, that together carry out a specific function. These are called tissues because of their identical functioning...
Program - Calgary Laboratory Services
- space for expansion (16 operating rooms)
- Expanded and renovated emergency department (main building)
- Musculoskeletal (MSK) Clinic
- Bone and Joint Program includes MSK Clinic, surgery, and teaching facilities
- SurgicalSurgerySurgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
processing - Admitting
See also
- Health Care in CalgaryHealth care in CalgaryCalgary currently has three major adult acute care hospitals; the Foothills Medical Centre, the Rockyview General Hospital and the Peter Lougheed Centre, and a children's acute care hospital; Alberta Children's Hospital, all running under the auspices of the Calgary Health Region...
- Health care in CanadaHealth care in CanadaHealth care in Canada is delivered through a publicly-funded health care system, which is mostly free at the point of use and has most services provided by private entities. It is guided by the provisions of the Canada Health Act. The government assures the quality of care through federal standards...
- List of hospitals in Canada