All About the Health Centre

The story of neighbours in the Pender Harbour area co-operating to provide their own health care began in 1929. In that year citizens volunteered their labour to build a hospital in Garden Bay. People came by boat from nearby bays, inlets and islands many hours away to work on their hospital. By August 1930, St. Mary's was ready under the auspices of the Anglican Church's Columbia Coast Mission to serve the community for three decades.

The Sunshine Coast population grew faster on the southern end of the peninsula and in 1964, St Mary's moved to a new building in Sechelt. A promised "modern clinic" in Madeira Park with minor surgical facilities and an "active qualified doctor" did not happen. The people of Pender Harbour lead by Jim Tyner, petitioned the Ministry of Health and in 1971 had a public meeting with Ministry officials to voice concerns about the a inability of residents to easily access medical care. At that time it took a 2 1/2 hour ambulance ride to get to the hospital. Despite further assurances and promises nothing happened.

The Tyners

Jim and Vi Tyner who were the "parents" of the Health Centre.

So in 1974 a non-profit incorporated society was formed. The initial building funding was obtained through the Ministry of Health and a Sunshine Coast Regional District taxation bylaw which was passed overwhelmingly by the area residents. The Pender Harbour & District Health Centre was then built, once again with volunteer labour and total community support…and officially opened on December 8, 1976.

The Health Centre is wholly owned and operated by the Pender Harbour & District Health Centre Society (the not-for-profit society incorporated in 1974) The PHHC serves Area A of the Sunshine Coast Regional District, a geographically dispersed area covering 752 square miles with a full time population of approximately 3000 which more than doubles in the summer.

PHHC Today

Since opening in 1976 the Health Centre has received two major expansions. The first expansion was completed in 1996 and more than doubled overall space allowing for increased services from other health professionals to be made available to the community. This expansion also provided some tenant rental income to help support our financial needs. The final expansion was completed in December 2006 and the Health Centre now encompasses approximately 7500 square feet. Our services include four major areas; Nursing Services; Doctor’s Services; Dental Services; and Specialist's Services.

Nursing Services. The PHHC offers 3 primary nursing care services to the community. Our RN's offer Venepuncture (Lab Services) and Ambulatory Care Services at the Health Centre and on the road Home Care Nursing into the community. We have two senior Nurse Team Leaders and a number of casual RN's to support both the Clinic and Home Care services. Normal hours are 8:00 am - 4:00 pm, Monday to Friday, and we operate half days on Saturdays during the summer months. We also offer a Continuing Diabetes Education program, supported by a Registered Nurse and a Registered Dietician who are both Certified Diabetes Educators. This program is unique to our Health Centre. Additionally, we actively support senior's s health through our involvement with the senior's Harbourside Friendships program and also provide support to both the Women's Wellness Program and a Youth Clinic Program. It is important to note that our nursing services are provided free of charge to the public...we do not receive any compensation through BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) and are dependent on other sources of funding for our operations. Other Health Centre staff, include an Administrator, a Financial Services Manager, a Clinical Office Manager and various contractors for maintenance, janitorial and landscaping services.

Doctor's Services. Trail Bay Doctor is a practice of four physicians who rotate between their Sechelt office and Madeira Park. We have one doctor and receptionist on site daily. They rent a dedicated wing in the Health Centre.

Dental Services. Sunshine Coast Dental Group is a full service dental practice that rotates their coverage between Gibson's and Madeira Park. They rent another dedicated wing in the Health Centre.

Specialists. We have several resident and visiting specialists delivering services from the Health Centre. They are located in the specialist’s wing. At this time they include:

  • Harbour Physiotherapy, which has expanded from an initial 1-2 days per week to 5 days per week. Regular tenant.
  • A Chiropractor, who practices on average two half days per week at the PHHC. Day use tenant.
  • A Massage Therapist, who practices on average two days per week at the PHHC. Day use tenant.
  • A Foot Care Nurse, who practices two to three days per month at the PHHC. Day use tenant
  • Mental health professionals, from the Ministry of Family & Children’s and the Sunshine Coast Mental Health & Addiction Services. This includes youth, adult and family counseling services. Day use tenants.
  • A Public Health Nurse, who is at the Health Centre weekly, focusing on Mom’s & Tots, young children and immunization programs. Through, Vancouver Coastal Health.
  • A Family Nurse Practitioner who is at the Health Centre twice a month and focused on Women’s Wellness and a Youth Clinic. Through, Vancouver Coastal Health.
  • A Rheumatologist, who practices an average of one day per month at the PHHC. Day use tenant.
  • A Dermatologist, who practices an average of one day per month at the PHHC. Day use tenant.

Additionally, the Health Centre boardroom is available for use by various community organizations or groups that are involved in overall general health related activities.

Funding Sources: The PHHC, is a unique entity in British Columbia because we do not operate under the auspices of a regional health authority. We are wholly owned and operated by the Pender Harbour & District Health Centre Society and our funding comes from 4 primary sources.

  1. A Sunshine Coast Regional District bylaw fund grant which covers the bulk of building maintenance, utility costs and non-professional costs.
  2. A contract from Vancouver Coastal Health Authority to provide Laboratory services, Ambulatory Care services and Home Care services from the Health Centre to Area A residents.
  3. Tenants account for a growing percentage of our income and these funds are used to balance any shortfalls we may have in our operating and medical services expenses.
  4. We also receive tremendous support from individual donations and bequests and from the Pender Harbour & District Health Centre Auxiliary which operates the Bargain Barn in Madeira Park. Community support has been critical over the years in meeting financial shortfalls in areas from salaries to equipment to operating costs. Over the years these additional funds have financed our expansions and most recently the "It's Ours" campaign paid off the Health Centre mortgage, in December 2008. An amazing achievement...

Mission Statement

To provide quality health care and respond to health related social needs in a respectful and caring environment

Vision

A leader in community health care