People living in North Quadra, Victoria and surrounding communities will soon have better access to team-based everyday health care with a new urgent and primary care centre (UPCC) opening in November.

“The new UPCC will help connect more people living in North Quadra with the team-based and comprehensive health care they need, closer to home,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health. “With the support of local physicians, our primary care strategy is leveraging community collaboration to strengthen primary care services throughout the province. It means that people who currently do not have a consistent family doctor or a nurse practitioner will benefit from increased access to regular, ongoing primary care.”

The North Quadra UPCC is a collaboration led by Island Health and the South Island and Victoria Divisions of Family Practice. Once the UPCC opens in November 2020, it will be located at 100 – 4420 Chatterton Way.

“People in the Saanich community have told me that they need more access to primary care,” Lana Popham, MLA for Saanich South. “This urgent and primary care centre in North Quadra will give residents better access to team-based urgent and primary care, closer to home. I am proud that our government is listening to people and creating meaningful solutions that will make life easier and healthier for all.”

It is anticipated that the health-care team will include family physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses and allied health professionals. Once fully staffed, the team will serve thousands of residents and will work to connect patients without a consistent family physician or nurse practitioner to one at the centre or in the community.

The North Quadra UPCC will offer urgent and ongoing team-based care and virtual care to people who need to see a health-care provider, but do not require the emergency department.

It will also provide seamless access to patient information across sites and will proactively improve care, using data. The UPCC is also expected to provide extended hours of operation.

This is the 20th urgent and primary care centre to be announced under the government’s primary care strategy and the fifth to be announced in the Island Health region.

The first centre is located in Langford and has surpassed 47,000 patient visits since opening in November 2018.

The second centre in Nanaimo has served more than 36,000 patient visits since opening in September 2019. The third is in James Bay in Victoria, and has served more than 5,000 patient visits since opening in April 2020. The fourth one to be announced was the Esquimalt centre, which is scheduled to open in late spring 2021.

To further improve access to primary health-care services in the Island Health region, the Province has also established nurse practitioner primary care clinics in Nanaimo and Victoria.

Quotes:

Leah Hollins, board chair, Island Health –

“The urgent and primary care centre in North Quadra will have a positive impact on all those living in the community and surrounding area who are looking for local, same-day access to health-care services. It will mean a team of health professionals working together at one location to provide same-day care and, for those who do not have a care provider, facilitate connections to primary care to better support their immediate and long-term care needs.” 

Dr. Kathleen Ross, president, Doctors of BC –

“We look forward to the integration of the North Quadra UPCC in hopes it will strengthen primary care in the community and ensure people there have access to the health care services they need while also supporting long-term relationships between patients and their family doctor.”

Michael Sandler, executive director, Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC —

“Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC are pleased to see that the knowledge, skills and expertise of the entire health-care team will be utilized to improve access to health care for all British Columbians through urgent and primary care clinics. We believe that this approach will be pivotal in ensuring B.C. families can access health-care services, and we are excited to see the opening of another urgent and primary care clinic in B.C.”

Dr. Vanessa Young, South Island Division of Family Practice –

“The South Island Division of Family Practice is pleased that one of the next urgent and primary care centres will open in North Quadra. We anticipate these new resources and funding for longitudinal primary care will help address a twenty-year long crisis in our south island communities. As a key resource in advancing our primary care future within South Island Division communities; we look forward to continuing to work closely with our health authority, Ministry of Health, First Nations and patient partners on a meaningful stakeholder engagement process to ensure the UPCC delivers on its promise of improved local health-care services in line with community needs.”

Drs. Tim Troughton and Katharine McKeen, co-chairs, Victoria Division of Family Practice –

“The Victoria Division of Family Practice is pleased that a majority of the new resources and funding for the North Quadra UPCC is directed to longitudinal primary care. We look forward to working closely with all our partners to make sure the new UPCC will address community needs and improve access to regular, ongoing care as well as urgent same-day and after-hours care.”

Quick Facts:

• Primary care is the day-to-day health care given by a health-care provider.
• Urgent primary care is the care that people need within 12 to 24 hours, for conditions such as sprains, urinary problems, ear infections, minor cuts or burns.
• Urgent and primary care centres are part of a comprehensive strategy to transform B.C.’s health system by bringing together and co-ordinating with health-care providers, services and programs to make it easier for people to access care, receive followup and connect to other services they may need.

Learn More:

To learn more about the Province’s primary health-care strategy, visit: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2018PREM0034-001010

To learn more about the Province’s strategy to increase the number of nurse practitioners, visit: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2018HLTH0034-000995

To learn more about the Province’s strategy to recruit and retain more family medicine graduates, visit: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2018HLTH0052-001043