Alberta Health Services and DynaLife are allowing Alberta Precision Laboratories to offer more community lab appointments, with a focus in the Calgary area. (Photo 11876726 © Picsfive | Dreamstime.com)

By Justin Goulet

Community lab appointments added in Calgary area

Aug 3, 2023 | 3:42 PM

CALGARY, AB – The provincial government has announced a step to address long wait times for routine lab services, particularly in the Calgary area.

Alberta Health Services (AHS) and DynaLife are allowing Alberta Precision Laboratories (APL) to offer more community lab appointments. Currently, APL handles lab work in all hospitals and urgent care centres across the province, while offering community lab services in rural areas.

Premier Danielle Smith stated, “It is unacceptable that Albertans are facing constant delays to get a simple test or blood work done.”

Smith added, “Lab tests are a critical part of a patient’s health care journey from diagnosis to treatment, and Albertans must be able to access them when and where they need them. That’s why we have directed Alberta Health Services to make changes right now.”

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The province announced that Albertans in need of lab services can book an appointment for Saturday, August 5, 2023, thanks to the addition of 400 new Saturday community lab bookings at the South Health Campus and Peter Lougheed Centre.

An additional 175 Saturday appointments will be available at the Foothills Medical Centre laboratory on August 12. The appointments can be accessed by calling 1-877-702-4486 and will be available for booking on an ongoing basis.

APL is also adding 7,500 weekly appointments, an increase of 25 per cent in the Calgary area by:

• Recruiting and hiring more staff in order to have lab services available six days a week within the APL hospital lab system. Officials note this will add 2,000 new bookings weekly into fall 2023.
• Contracting additional third-party providers to add extra capacity, which should result in 3,000 new appointments per week by mid-to-late August in Calgary.
• Opening a new community patient service centre in southeast Calgary and expanding Glenbrook and Airdrie patient service centres, which officials said will result in about 2,500 new appointments weekly later this fall.

All existing appointments and lab services will continue to be provided as scheduled. The province said Albertans can book their lab appointments online or by calling 1-877-702-4486.

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now.

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