Helipad donation flies in to help during new hospital construction

From left: Base31’s Vice President, Marketing & Communications Liz Kohn, Quinte Health Vice President & Chief Nursing Executive Lina Rinaldi, Quinte Health Board Chairperson Lisa O’Toole, President and acting CEO Base31, Assaf Weisz, PECMH Foundation Executive Director Shannon Coull, PECMH Foundation Board Chairperson Peggy Payne, Dr. Amber Hayward-Stewart, PECMH Foundation Back the Build Campaign Cabinet Chairperson Nancy Parks.

Story and photos by Sharon Harrison

Dr. Amber Hayward-Stewart

“Having you step-up to this and provide this helipad means moments; that lives can be saved,” expressed County family physician Dr. Amber Hayward-Stewart. “When we have major traumas in this area, we have the ability to send in physicians and nursing staff if we have to through Ornge, but to be able to get our people out to critical care… most people don’t understand how important that is.”

Base31 (owned and operated by PEC Community Partners Inc.) has committed to a three-year commitment to the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation’s Back the Build campaign to construct a temporary off-site helipad. The gift-in-kind donation is valued at $150,000.

The partnership means emergency air ambulance services will be able to continue during the construction of the new hospital, ensuring a vital continuity of care.

Present for the announcement of the Base31 partnership with the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Foundation (PECMHF) and Quinte Health, from PECMHF were: Shannon Coulll (executive director), Peggy Payne (board chairperson), Nancy Parks (Back the Build campaign chairperson), and Dr. Hayward-Stewart.

Attending from Quinte Health were Lina Rinaldi (vice-president and chief nursing executive), Lisa O’Toole (board chairperson), and from Base31, Assaf Weisz (president and acting CEO), and Liz Kohn (vice-president, marketing and communications).

Base31 has donated the space and built a temporary helipad at the intersection of the two landing strips on the north end of the Picton airport property.

“The helipad supporting Ornge Air Ambulance has been temporarily relocated to provide a safe landing location for air ambulances and this helipad is fully functional should the need for Ornge services arise.”

Land ambulances leaving the hospital will meet air ambulances at Base31 to transfer patients to hospitals providing specialized emergency services.

The need to have a new temporary helipad close by arose once construction of the new hospital was underway as the hospital’s on-site helipad as it was located where the new hospital is being built.

The temporary helipad which is now fully functional is to remain in operation during the new hospital construction period and services will move back to the new hospital site (to be located on the northwest corner of the hospital property near McFarland Drive) once it is completed and up and running, predicted to be early 2027.

Shannon Coull

Coull stated Base31’s is offer is “a gift to be grateful for, enabling the service to be made available and to continue. I wanted to bring all of us together to thank Base31 and for helping us continue helping Quinte Health to continue to provide essential health care services to our community through the retention of the helipad,” she said.

“I know there was a long discussion involved in the beginning to find out and explore where the helicopter pad was going to be, and it was pretty obvious that this would be the location, and it’s so wonderful that Base31 was open to sharing the property and land so that these services can continue to be provided.”

Lina Rinaldi

Rinaldi also expressed appreciation for the in-kind contribution, delighted to be in the partnership, expressing how it means so much to local communities. She outlined the importance of having a local helipad and to be able to continue the critical air services, especially since Kingston and even Belleville are quite far away.

“I often describe where the Picton hospital is located in the County, and how beautiful our communities are, but they are very far apart,” explained Rinaldi. “So really it was very important to us to have a helipad and work with Ornge and work with our community going forward to still provide medivac services and to get people in and out as we’ve needed to.”

Weisz said Base31 is proud to play a role in safeguarding the health and safety of neighbours during this critical time.

“Air transport is essential to ensuring patients receive life-saving care without delay, and we see this partnership as part of our ongoing commitment to supporting the community we call home,” said Weisz. “Working alongside the PECMHF and Quinte Health, we are honoured to help ensure uninterrupted emergency medical services while our new hospital is being built.”

Delighted to be in partnership with the hospital, he added Base31 believes in long-term prosperity of the County, and of the region.

“And you can’t have prosperity without community health, in this case capital “H” health, and so we are really, really pleased to be a part of making the new hospital a reality,” he expressed. “We are cheering on the construction of the hospital and we can’t wait for it to be established and open, so we are really delighted to be able to support.”

He also noted the connection of having a helipad situated on the property given the base is a place of aviation history. The airport there has since been closed.

Peggy Payne

Noting that while the helipad is not used often, Payne said it is enormously invaluable in certain situations.

“This summer, with the number of unfortunate drownings, many of the folks had to come to the emergency department so it was enormously important,” said Payne. “Throughout the year, when there is less tourists around, it probably isn’t used as frequently, but for those of us who live in the County you can actually hear it go over, and Ornge has a very distinctive sound and you’ll know when it’s coming.

Nancy Parks

“We so appreciate that you have been able to stand-up and offer this space for three years, and we appreciate the gift-in-kind, because there was nowhere else, apart from the high school parking lot, which they didn’t want to give-up.”

The generous contribution of land for a temporary helipad is another wonderful example of the community spirit that powers our Back the Build campaign, added Parks.

“While we look ahead to a new hospital, complete with an on-site helipad, this interim solution ensures we continue to provide timely care during the construction phase,” she said.

Weisz knows first-hand the importance of medivac services when they are needed the most, where he shared a recent personal story.

Assaf Weisz

“In late March, my wife was in a really bad car accident (not in the County) where she was really injured by the accident and they needed to pull her out,” shared Weisz. “The local hospital couldn’t take care of her, so she actually needed a medivac helicopter to get to Hamilton hospital and that was really, really critical for her, so I know personally how important it is.”

“That’s why it’s so important to have it here,” added O’Toole. “Looking at the geography, what we serve in Quinte Health, was very important to keep the base here for the community.”

She also expressed how it was a pleasure to be part of an event that recognizes and celebrates true community leadership in action.

“After all, without, the work we do wouldn’t be possible, with the people, with our partners. with partners who care so very deeply, whether or not it’s our incredible team members and volunteers, whether it’s our foundation partners, whether it’s a volunteer board of directors, whether its community builders and business leaders alike.”

Lisa O’Toole

O’Toole added Base31s incredible generosity in hosting the medivac on an interim basis is far more than a relationship.

“It’s a commitment to care; it’s a commitment to connection and to community, and after all, strong healthy communities get built when everybody steps-up, when you stepped-up, Base31 stepped-up, we’re grateful.”

Coull said Base31s generous $150,000 in-kind donation of land and construction of a temporary helipad is a remarkable demonstration of local support.

“We are incredibly grateful to the entire Base31 team for stepping-up in such a meaningful way to support patient care in our community during this important time.”

As well as getting the first word, Dr. Hayward-Stewart gets the last word as she noted how sometimes the doctors and nurses working in emergency aren’t always heard from as they go about their important work, sharing how they are all very grateful for the contribution.

“Hopefully, when our new hospital is built, we’re here for all of you and all our community,” she said. “It is very important that we band together as a community and support one another, so we are really gracious of your donation to us because that is so important to us every day in what we deal with.”