Community celebration marks hospital construction milestone

Story and photos by Sharon Harrison
“Today, we are celebrating something that will change our history. We are making history right now, we are building a brand-new hospital,” announced Shannon Coull, executive director with the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation (PECMHF). “This is the largest project our community has ever undertaken.”

“Today marks a huge milestone in our community’s journey toward providing care services to County residents,” added County mayor Steve Ferguson.

The idea of making history was reinforced when Jason-Emery Groen, design director and senior vice-president with HDR, noted how the new state-of-the-art facility will be the first all mass timber hospital in North America.

“It will also be, by energy-intensity usage, the lowest energy use hospital in North America,” said Groen.

It was a time for celebration Tuesday evening as PECMHF marked the last phase of the Back the Build fundraising campaign and the groundbreaking milestone of the start of construction for the new County hospital (which just recently begun).

The entire community was invited to the free celebration held at Base31’s Drill Hall where many hundreds turned out.

Along with residents, it included Foundation board members (past and present), hospital staff, dignitaries, donors, supporters, auxiliary members, Quinte Health board and staff members, volunteers, along with friends, neighbours and proud family members.

“What a great day this is for our community; I have goose bumps from head to toe: construction of our brand new hospital has started,” said Coull.

“It goes without saying that if it were not for the Prince Edward County community, all of you, for contributing to the Back the Build campaign, we likely would not be here today. So, to every one of you in our community and beyond who has donated, thank you – you are amazing.”

There were speeches, reflections of what has been accomplished in the last 10 years to reach the milestone, also how saving the hospital all began, along with many thank-you’s and gratitude to each and every person who has contributed to making the vision and the dream a reality, but also recognizing the volunteers, and the hospital fundraising campaign cabinet.

Also present were Nancy Parks (Back the Build campaign cabinet chair), Stacey Daub (Quinte Health president and CEO), Dr. Sarah Le Blanc (PECMH medical lead), who each spoke to the new hospital project.

Dr. Sarah Le Blanc

“This is a story about a small hospital that could, It’s a story of grit, resilience and belief,” said Daub. “The County hospital has been at the heart of this community for generations, and today, as we celebrate that we are moving forward and celebrating the commitment of the community, we get to carry forward that legacy, a future where healthcare is accessible, compassionate and innovative, right here, close to home.”

She also reminded that the new hospital is going to have the first CT scanner close to home in this community, meaning patients won’t have to travel to Belleville for the service.

Le Blanc spoke to the years of effort to finally seeing shovels in the ground.

“It’s hard to imagine ever being excited about construction, especially construction on Picton Main Street, but I can tell you that we are excited at PECMH. We are so proud of the work we do and we are proud of our team members of all levels.”

Le Blanc also noted how the hospital’s heli-pad will be relocated to Base31 during construction.

“We don’t often need a heli-pad, but when we need it, we really need it, and it’s great that this World War Two airbase can be used for this purpose,” said Le Blanc.

Parks noted how $23 million of the $30 million goal “is a remarkable achievement, and today we are celebrating just how far we have come. We have yet to reach our goal of $30 million, but we are close, and I have no doubt that with our community’s support, we will get there.

“This community has shown how exceptional it is to support something we believe it. We just don’t talk about it; we put our visions about what we determined we need, into action,” she said. “Extraordinary support has come from local businesses, and generations of families continually contribute in many ways to their communities.”

She spoke to the many ways the community contributes to help raise funds for the hospital, from kids raising money with a lemonade stand, to the bottle drive in Wellington, to those individuals holding yard sales, and the numerous fundraising events.

“We have friends leave legacy gifts in their estates, sell shares for our cause, memorials for their loved ones, and on and on. From day one of our campaign, the vision of the Foundation and its cabinet, has been to have everyone who walks through the new hospital’s front door to be able to say, ‘I helped build this hospital’.”

“Raising the local share for a project of this magnitude is no small feat,” added Parks, “but one that has been so enjoyable and fulfilling, given the incredible need the donations will serve this community.”

Explaining some of the basic build design details, Groen indicated how there is a huge team behind the project, but it was the making history aspect of the project that had him the most excited.

Jason Emery Groen

“What’s exciting is tonight the groundbreaking ceremony is not just for you the community, but it’s actually being watched worldwide. In fact, right here in North America, this will be the first all mass timber hospital, ever. There has never been such a thing.“

He indicated how hospitals in general are some of the worst offenders when it comes to energy use of any building type, whether they are constructed using concrete or steel, for example, because of the energy it takes to create the materials.

“When we build hospitals, concrete is the most prevalent way we build, and it happens to be very labour intensive,” said Groen. “ A lot of the small health care projects are steel construction, also labour intensive, also very energy intensive, and not just in the foundries, but also in the transportation of that material to the site, it’s very heavy.“

He indicated that mass timber is engineered wood from managed forests.

“They come together to actually make assemblies of materials that are some of the lightest and strongest materials that we can use.“

Mayor Ferguson also spoke to the visionaries, as “the basis of the effort that as got us to where we are today”, where he noted a few, such as Dave Gray, Leo Finnegan and Monica Alyea, “and many, many more”.

Ferguson also touched on how in the early 2000s, there was a real possibility that Prince Edward County’s hospital would close forever.

“Back then, the late Dave Gray formed Patrons of our County Hospital (POOCH) to fight against that very real threat,” explained Ferguson. “In April 2013, he and about 200 residents boarded buses and went to Queen’s Park to protest cuts to the hospital that might eventually lead to its demise.”

He said POOCH handed over a petition signed by 5,220 citizens, which was presented in the legislature.

Stacey Daub, Quinte Health President and CEO

Daub spoke to what the hospital means to so many.

“We call the County hospital a house of healing. It’s more than a building, it’s a life-line for so many, for the many people who come to enjoy the County and the extraordinary people that live here,” said Daub.

She also spoke to the entire hospital team, doctors, nurses, support staff, administration and facilities among them, and how proud they are to see this project come to fruition.

“The dedication of perseverance that they have shown over the last number of years as we faced, what I can only describe as a once-in-a-lifetime (once in a career for me) demand of the healthcare system, they were willing to show up every day and create an environment of kindness and openness is nothing short of remarkable.”

She said, sometimes people think that only innovation and amazing things can happen in large cities with lots of resources.

“Here in Prince Edward County, we are actually leading the way. We are showing the world, and Canada, and Ontario, how rural communities can embrace cutting-edge technology, environmental sustainability, and a powerful vision for the future,” she said. “The new hospital is a symbol of when we come together, when we believe in our ability to create healthier communities, right here at home.”

The family-friendly event included face painting for the kids, a vast array of culinary offerings and cash bar. After the formalities there was live musical entertainment provided by the Pushbroom Tycoons to get the dancing started, which continued into the evening.