The new helipad, which will enable personnel from Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service (STARS) to land at the site, became operational on 25 July, after receiving certification from Transport Canada on 24 July.

Along with the new helipad, JPCH will host the new Royal University Hospital (RUH) Adult Emergency Department, as well as a new Children’s Emergency Department. STARS currently transfers around 300 patients to RUH each year, and so the new helipad and departments will drastically reduce the patient transfer time from 25 minutes to three minutes.

The total capital budget for JPCH was $285.9 million, which included $257.6 million from the Province of Saskatchewan. JPCH Foundation fundraised over $75 million ($28.3 million for capital costs and $46.6 million for furniture and equipment). And the RUH Foundation fundraised $5 million for equipment and furniture in the new adult Emergency Department.

The 2019-20 Provincial Budget also provided $9.6 million to finalise IT needs at JPCH and an increase of $23 million to support operations when the hospital opens this fall.

“This is a critical piece of infrastructure to ensure timely access to advanced medical care for the health of Saskatchewan patients,” said Corey Miller, Vice-President of Provincial Programs with the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA). “On behalf of the SHA, we would like to thank our staff, project team, and partners for all of their efforts in getting us to the point of opening this heliport earlier than originally scheduled. These efforts will have positive impacts on patients by reducing transfer times and providing quicker access to our clinical teams.”