The Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre is an Advanced Level II facility with stroke designation, serving the needs of the population of the City of Barrie and the surrounding area. The facility is located at 201 Georgian Drive in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. The CEO is Janice Skot. The hospital has a $340 million budget. The Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre is a 299-bed acute care facility. With a team of over 380 physicians, 2,500 staff members and 850 volunteers, the RVH provides healthcare specializing in cancer care, surgical services, critical care, mental health rehabilitation services, as well as women and children's programs. The Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre is the only hospital in Barrie and is the regional hospital for a large geographical region including central Simcoe County Barrie, Innisfil, south Springwater, south Oro- Medonte, a small portion of Essa Township. The hospital dates to 1891, when it was known as the "Barrie General Hospital", which was located on Duckworth Street near Ardagh's Grove. The facility has relocated and expanded many times since its inception.
Etymology
The Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre was named after Queen Victoria as Queen of Canada from Canada's confederation in 1867-1901.
There are in excess of 83,000 visits to the Emergency Department, annually. RVH has 2,400 births each year. Since opening in 1997, activities across the board have virtually doubled. The helipad for the hospital is found at ground level across from Georgian College Residences and requires ambulance transfer to the hospital's emergency department.
Expansion
In 2009, Royal Victoria Hospital embarked on the largest capital project in its history. The expansion program has been broken into Phase 1 and Phase 2. Construction of the main phase, Phase 1, is expected to conclude in the spring of 2012. Phase 1 Phase one includes a $450 million redevelopment and expansion project that will almost double the size of the hospital, adding of space, and capacity for 165 additional inpatient beds, including a dedicated Coronary Care Unit; significant expansions of the Emergency Department, Diagnostic Imaging and Laboratory and two additional Operating Rooms. In addition to the significant expansion, another of the current facility will undergo extensive renovations. The main features of the Phase 1 expansion include:
The Simcoe Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre, which will log more than 65,000 patient visits in its first year
165 new inpatient beds, including a dedicated Coronary Care Unit for critically ill cardiac patients
An Emergency Department that will triple in size and includes trauma, isolation areas, a clinical decision unit and mental health suite.
An expanded Diagnostic Imaging Department will double in size to increase patient flow and privacy
An expanded Laboratory
Two new Operating Rooms which are larger than existing suites for complex surgeries
"Rotary House", a residential lodge for cancer patients and their families who live more than 40 kilometres outside Barrie.
Phase 2 As Phase 1 nears completion, Phase 2 will begin. Phase 2 will consist of significant renovations to the existing hospital, including construction of new operating rooms, more patient beds, construction/update to the special care nursery and an expansion to the surgical unit.
