Setting the stage for enhanced and expanded space for medical students, Shirley Bond, MLA for Prince George-Valemount, celebrated the grand opening of the new Learning and Development Centre today.

“The new Learning and Development Centre is another critical piece of infrastructure that will support the training of health-care professionals in Northern B.C.,” said Shirley Bond, MLA for Prince George-Valemount, who attended today’s event on behalf of Health Minister Terry Lake. “The expanded space and state of the art equipment will ensure that students trained here at UHNBC have everything they need to be successful in their programs and be well prepared to work here in the North.”

Vice Provost Medicine UNBC and Regional Associate Dean, Northern BC, UBC Faculty of Medicine Dr. Paul Winwood, along with recent Northern Medical Program graduates Dr. Rob Tower and Dr. Heather Siemens show off the new patient simulation facility at the Learning and Development Centre. Download High Resolution Image.

The 1,365 square-metre (14,693 square-feet) centre provides additional space for students in the Northern Medical program and medical residents pursuing specialty training. Currently, upwards of 1,000 students in a variety of health-care disciplines — from doctors and nurses to lab and X-ray technicians — work out of the University Hospital of Northern B.C., the College of New Caledonia, and other northern post-secondary partners each year and all will be using different aspects of the new building.

The centre provides a spacious learning environment for the students complimenting the services housed in the fifth floor of the University Hospital of Northern B.C. The services the new Learning and Development Centre will offer includes: a library; seminar rooms with a combined capacity of up to 140 people; a clinical simulation centre; video conferencing suites; and group study areas.

The $10.5-million dollar Learning and Development Centre is funded by the Province of British Columbia. The project was completed by Western Industrial Contractors, based out of Prince George.

“The new facility is an example of a building that will benefit Northern B.C., built by a company based in the North,” said Mike Morris, MLA for Prince George-Mackenzie. “We’re enhancing the educational experiences of future health-care professionals, who we hope will then stay and provide their services to residents in Northern British Columbia.”

The clinical simulation portion of the new centre features robotic patients that mimic health concerns of patients, and allows students to develop hands-on but pain-free skills in cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological and pharmacological areas of study. The Northern Health patient simulation program has four permanent locations across the North: Prince George, Quesnel, Fort St. John, and Terrace. The simulation centre, along with the hospital’s library, was moved from the main hospital into the new Learning and Development Centre.

“We want to ensure health care professionals in Northern Health have access to the latest information, and that they have the materials they need to help them in their health care practice,” said Cathy Ulrich, Northern Health chief executive officer and president. “Northern Health Library Services helps with information and knowledge management services with various health care disciplines, and we’re very excited to have this included in the new Learning and Development Centre.”

The new centre is a key health education partnership between Northern Health, the University of British Columbia, and the University of Northern British Columbia.

“The Learning and Development Centre will provide much-needed space to expand the delivery of our medical education program in the North, and reinforces the university hospital’s important place in the faculty’s network of clinical academic campuses,” said Dr. Gavin Stuart, dean of the UBC Faculty of Medicine and vice provost of Health. “The resources of this new facility will help our students and residents develop critical thinking skills and medical knowledge within a high-tech learning environment.”

“We’re proud of the health care education programs that are delivered by UNBC and in partnership with the UBC Faculty of Medicine,” said Dr. Daniel Weeks, UNBC president. “The Learning and Development Centre will help enhance the experience of these future health-care professionals and be another benefit for northern learners.”

It is expected that select UNBC and UBC Faculty of Medicine health care-related classes will be held at the Learning and Development Centre during the current summer semester, with expanded use in the fall.