Hundreds gathered at the Red Deer Memorial Centre yesterday afternoon to show their support in the fight of a Red Deer Regional Hospital Expansion.

The message was clear, Red Deer Regional Hospital needs an expansion and they need it now.

At a rally put on by Central Alberta Needs Cardiac Catheterization, the group encouraged the public to speak out and apply pressure to their politicians and the CEO of AHS and demand a facility upgrade.

With Calgary and Edmonton receiving 10 to 20 times more funding per capita than Red Deer, Orthopedic Surgeon at the hospital Dr. Keith Wolstenholme said it’s become common practice to push patients away due to lack of beds.

“It’s devastating. Every physician, every healthcare provider who answers this calling to care for people does it for exactly that reason, to care for people. It’s tough to ration care and it’s not something I learned in medical school or something you learn in a textbook.”

“It’s something you have to do when you’re forced to and it’s an unpleasant experience.”

City councilor Ken Johnston has been a strong advocate for an expansion since losing his wife Isabelle three and a half months after having a heart attack last November.

Dealing with that tragedy gave him a good look at the problems the hospital is having.

“In those hundred days, I saw many cases. Cardiac cases, orthopedic cases, neurology cases and so on, where our hospital is stressed, so strained and that delay there’s pain being caused.”

With all the talk of Red Deer needing a catheterization lab, Wolstenholme said yes, they absolutely need one, but it needs to be part of a full major redevelopment.

“A lot of people have said to me privately that they feel is what we will get is the catheterization lab as hush money or shut up money to avoid the full Red Deer Regional Hospital redevelopment and we can’t accept that.”

“We need beds to look after those patients afterwards, we need outpatient programs, let alone all the other patients with other diagnoses who are being short changed right now.”

Edmonton and Calgary have recent commitments for new builds more than of $1 billion, whereas the Central Zone has received just $56 million over the last 12 years.