BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre has supported the repatriation of 26,946 hours back to operating rooms (ORs) at St. Paul’s Hospital and Vancouver General Hospital from January 1, 2019 – Dec 31, 2025, through the expansion of the BC Women’s Leslie, Lauri + Jill Diamond Surgical Suites. This expansion has contributed to an average repatriation of 303 inpatient admission days per year* back to St. Paul’s and Vancouver General by increasing surgical capacity at BC Women’s Hospital and improving efficiencies in care delivery across the system.​

The expansion of the BC Women’s surgical suites since 2019, due in part to funding from the Diamond Foundation through BC Women’s Health Foundation, includes the addition of three operating rooms for general anesthesia, one procedure room for nurse-led sedation, and four inpatient beds for patients requiring overnight post-operative admission. Surgeons and other medical staff at BC Women’s have since been trained in procedural sedation techniques – including more than 20 gynecologic surgeons – to better the utilization of OR hours. 

The BC Women’s procedural sedation service allows patients having same-day procedures – such as a biopsy of the endometrial lining – to have sedation administered by a nurse outside of resource-intensive ORs. This frees up OR spaces at BC Women’s and other Vancouver hospitals for more complex surgeries that require general anesthesia. 

“Previously, patients could experience long wait times for gynecological surgeries, in part because most procedures are performed in ORs due to lack of alternative facilities,” says Dr. Stephanie Fisher, interim senior medical director, Gynecology and Specialized Services, BC Women’s Hospital. “We’re now able to take patients who would have previously been cared for at general hospitals across the city and provide them with dedicated gynecological care at BC Women’s. Time is then freed up at tertiary hospitals and can be reallocated to patients waiting for other types of surgery as a form of resource re-allocation within the region”.

​​The original procedural sedation pilot project was trialed in 2017 and was found to improve patient experience and decrease the average wait time for gynecology surgery from 56 days to 20 days (64 per cent decrease). The unit at BC Women’s is recognized across Canada as a model-standard and was recently visited by a team from Nova Scotia who are looking to set up their own Procedural Sedation Care suite.

​​“Other hospitals across the province have since adopted this model, including Surrey Memorial Hospital, where we have trained doctors,” says Dr. Jonathan Collins, medical director - anesthesia, BC Women’s Hospital Surgical Services. “The focus is on treating the right patient in the right location. Not only have we freed up OR time, but there are benefits for patients having minor procedures. They are having less anesthetic which reduces the risk of side effects and can also lead to a quicker recovery”.

​​​For more information about BC Women’s Gynecological Surgical Services, visit our website.