The new Westshore Community Health Centre welcomed patients for the first time as it opened its doors Wednesday (June 1).
The centre is run out of the newly renovated Pacific Centre Family Services Association building at 324 Goldstream Ave. and will be integrated into the Western Communities Primary Care Network.
A community health centre is a not-for-profit centre run by communities and is part of the provinceB´ÎÔª¹ÙÍøÍøÖ·™s primary care strategy. There are five in the province and two others on the Island: Island Sexual Health and Luther Court.
In order to receive care at the CHC, eligible patients need to register through the Health Connect Registry.
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The staff will be staffed by 17.2 full-time equivalent (FTE) health-care workers, including family doctors, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, social worker and community health workers. The team will gradually increase to 19 FTE health-care providers.
Doctors of BC, a medical professional association, estimates there are 100,000 people without a family doctor in Greater Victoria.
The province will be giving $4 million in annual operating funding once the centre reaches full capacity and as much as $1.9 million for one-time startup costs.
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bailey.moreton@goldstreamgazette.com
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