Northern Health expects the new Dawson Creek & District Hospital to open in early 2027. Concept renderings offer a look at what patients and families will see when they arrive, from the main entrance and waiting areas to patient rooms and the hospital’s spiritual room.
More Room for Care Close to Home
The new hospital is designed for 70 inpatient beds, up from 46 at the current hospital. The emergency department will be about twice its current size, with 15 treatment spaces instead of 10. It will also have its own entrance and registration area, and walls between treatment spaces will give patients more privacy.
The new maternity unit will have rooms where patients can go through labour, delivery, recovery and postpartum care in the same space, as well as a nursery. The inpatient mental health unit will grow from 15 to 18 beds. The hospital will continue to provide surgery, chemotherapy, diagnostic imaging and physical rehabilitation.
When the Province announced the construction agreement in June 2023, Jennifer Rice, then parliamentary secretary for rural health, said the new hospital would help people in Dawson Creek and surrounding communities “access quality services without travelling long distances.” Leonard Hiebert, then chair of the Peace River Regional Hospital District, described what the project would bring to the region as “a modern care facility for the residents of the Peace region for years to come.”
Concept Renderings
Getting Ready for Opening Day
Opening a hospital takes more than finishing the building. Northern Health’s preparations include testing systems such as medical gases and fire alarms, setting up equipment and supplies, and giving staff time to train in the new spaces.
Patients will continue to receive care at the current hospital until services move. Northern Health has yet to announce an exact opening date, but is on track for an early 2027 opening.