On March 19th, the Village of Delburne hosted a ground breaking ceremony to mark the start of the Delburne Medical Centre project. Located on Main Street, the new medical centre facility has been a joint initiative of the Village of Delburne, Red Deer County and Dr. Muti Kauchali. Construction of the Delburne Medical Centre is expected to continue into the fall when the medical centre will be open and the family medical clinic will be accepting new patients.
The Delburne Medical Centre will provide desperately needed medical care for the residents in a number of communities in Red Deer County, including Delburne, Elnora, Lousana, and Pine Lake. Village of Delburne Mayor Bill Chandler said, “Most of our residents currently travel into Red Deer or Stettler, more than a 30-minute drive. This can be a real barrier to seeking care.”
In the 50’s, Delburne grew rapidly and had a resident doctor. Over the years medical spaces closed which decreased the medical care to only one doctor who would provide short term, temporary visits. After he retired in the 1990’s there has not been a doctor serving the area’s residents. It has been over 60 years since a clinic space has operated in the Village.
In explaining how the project started, Dr. Kauchali recounted how during his rotation at the Red Deer hospital he would meet people coming in for conditions that should have been treated much earlier. “They were saying that there were no family doctors in the area, so they waited and the situation would get worse. I started to look into it, and they were right, there are no family medical practices in the area.” After multiple meetings with the Village council, he developed plans for a purpose built medical centre right in Delburne.
Dr. Kauchali talked about his approach to family medical practice and desire to create a ‘Patient Centred Medical Home’. When asked to explain that concept he said, “This is a patient centred, comprehensive, team based care that has much better health outcomes”. Dr. Kauchali explained that the clinic would provide care for a range of acute and chronic medical services, including addictions services. “We will also be looking at providing phlebotomy services, so patients won’t have to travel out to get their blood tests done.”
The ground breaking was well attended by residents of the area as well as officials from the Village of Delburne and Red Deer County. Mayor Bill Chandler summed it up saying, “This is a great day for Delburne. A great day for the entire region.”
The project entails a 7,500 sq. ft. facility that provides dedicated clinic spaces, a pharmacy, allied medical spaces, meetings spaces and a dedicated ambulance transfer bay. The clinic space will include exam rooms, consultation rooms, a procedure room as well as dedicated administrative spaces.
Dr. Kauchali currently resides in Red Deer County with his family and is actively recruiting physicians to join him in the new clinic space. He has over 15 years of experience in Family Medical practice and 24 years as a medical doctor. He is currently a partner with the Sylvan Family Health Centre in Sylvan Lake and a clinic lecturer in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Alberta.
-Submitted by Anderson Business Consulting Inc.
