Kitimat General Hospital now has its own CT scanner. The first patients were scanned on Thursday, April 9, 2026, in a newly renovated diagnostic imaging department.
Until now, anyone in Kitimat who needed a CT scan had to travel to Terrace, and urgent cases often went by ambulance. Those scans now happen here. Doctors can diagnose and begin treatment sooner, and fewer ambulances leave town for transfers, so they stay available for local calls.
What a CT Scanner Does
A CT (computed tomography) scanner takes detailed cross section images of the body. Doctors use it to assess injuries after an accident and to diagnose and monitor conditions such as stroke, cancer, tumours and blood clots. It is a standard tool in any hospital that provides acute care.
Built by Kitimat
The project cost $4.7 million, which covered the scanner itself, renovations to the department and installation. The Kitimat General Hospital Foundation raised $2.4 million of that from donors, including LNG Canada, the Max Lange Foundation, the First West Foundation, the District of Kitimat and many people in our community. LNG Canada donated $900,000 in the fall of 2023, the gift that completed the campaign. The District of Kitimat committed $800,000 over two years. The North West Regional Hospital District contributed $1.88 million, and Northern Health provided the remaining capital investment.
Foundation President Laurel D’Andrea has called the scanner a “transformative milestone for our community.”
Good for Patients and for Recruitment
Having CT on site lets hospital staff work to a broader scope of practice, and it means Kitimat can now offer CT training to students, adding to the X-ray and ultrasound training already offered here. When the District of Kitimat looked at why it is hard to recruit health care workers to town, the lack of a CT scanner came up as one of the reasons. That gap is now closed.
Thank You
This scanner is here because people in Kitimat decided it should be. To every donor, sponsor, business and volunteer who helped make it happen, thank you. If you would like to help fund the next piece of equipment our hospital needs, visit our Ways to Give page.