Editor’s Note

SPRING’S PENDING arrival feels different this year. I’ve found myself counting down the days until the season’s start (more so than usual) as it really does represent a new beginning. Around this time last year, Canada was at the outset of COVID-19, and life was full of doom and gloom. Sure, the threat of the pandemic won’t be over on March 20, especially with the emergence and spread of new virus variants that are more transmissible, but we’ll have made it through winter and hopefully the worst of the coronavirus outbreak given the vaccine rollout.

Looking forward to a brighter future, it seems fitting to feature a healthcare facility that will have a transformational impact on patients when complete in 2023 — earlier detection of cancer, better treatments, better survival rates and better quality of life. The new Calgary Cancer Centre at the Foothills Medical Centre will replace the venerable Tom Baker Cancer Centre when it opens its doors after almost seven years of construction, taking healthcare for southern Albertans to new heights.

On the topic of healthcare development, Chris McQuillan of B+H Architects draws parallels between one of the greatest sea kings and superhospitals, and explores how naval history can inform the future of hospital design in The Battleship on the Ground.

From here, we turn to health and safety matters, all related to COVID-19. Life Support highlights CovidCARE, a program that was created in the midst of the pandemic as a way to support staff and physicians at all three of Halton Healthcare’s hospitals. Next, Carl Kennedy of Stance Healthcare addresses furniture considerations in the age of COVID and beyond. Critical Environment Control Systems compares such systems with typical HVAC, and discusses how to overcome the deficiencies of common devices. Rounding out this section is O2 in Demand, which looks at resilient bulk oxygen supply systems in light of increased demand for this life necessity amid the pandemic.

To close, Kent Waddington of the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care walks through the benefits and challenges of zero-emissions vehicle/electric vehicle charging station installations at healthcare facilities in Electrifying the Transportation Grid.

If you are interested in contributing an article to the publication or there’s a topic you’d like to see covered, please contact me.

Clare Tattersall claret@mediaedge.ca

Reproduction or adoption of articles appearing in Canadian Healthcare Facilities is authorized subject to acknowledgement of the source. Opinions expressed in articles are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Canadian Healthcare Engineering Society. For information or permission to quote, reprint or translate articles contained in this publication, please write or contact the editor.

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