By

Terry Fleurie


January 30, 2024

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Barry’s Bay – St. Francis Memorial Hospital (SFMH) desperately needs an update and expansion of its Emergency Department and Ambulatory Care areas and last week, members of the St. Francis Valley Healthcare Foundation (SFVHF) made a pitch to Madawaska Valley (MV) Township council for a financial commitment from the municipality.

SFVHF Executive Director Erin Gienow was joined by and Chris Briggs and Dr. Joe Cybulski, members of the leadership team of the “growing together” campaign, for a presentation to council on January 16, asking council to consider a $50,000 contribution over three years for the redevelopment and expansion project.

“They’re helping the Foundation to raise funds for the redevelopment of the Emergency Department and the renovations of the Ambulatory Care area,” Mrs. Gienow explained.

Mr. Briggs shared a brief history of the hospital, noting when the sod was turned, Henry Chapeskie, his grandfather, was president of the hospital board.

“So, I was immersed in this from a very, very young age,” he pointed out.

The dream for a hospital started in the early 1940s with Monsignor Peter Biernackie enlisting the women from the Ladies Auxiliary at the church to help raise funds.    

“By the mid-40s, they raised something like $40,000 by the time they got to breaking ground, which was a very big deal back then,” he said.

The board at the time consisted of Mr. Chapeskie, Chris Corrigan, Eddie Shalla, Maxie Mintha and Paul Yakabuski.

The hospital was officially opened in 1960 by then Premier Leslie Frost and Beverly (Flynn) Glofcheskie, the great niece of Msgr. Biernacki. Initially there were about 35 employees.       

Paul Yakabuski, who emceed the event, was the reeve of Barry’s Bay and Murray Daly was the reeve of Sherwood, Jones and Burns and the Warden of Renfrew County.

“The cost to build the hospital was $445,000,” Mr. Briggs said. “It was a bit of a long journey from the time the land was purchased in the late 40’s to the time they broke ground, but it was one of the greatest achievements, I think, in our village.

“And we’re very, very fortunate to have it,” he added.

A major expansion was started in 1985 and completed in 1987. Mr. Briggs noted a key component in the success of the hospital was its partnership with Renfrew Victoria Hospital in 1998.

“That brought all the satellite clinics to our hospital, which is huge with an elderly population and a long drive to Ottawa,” he stated.

He said when he owned Lorraine’s Pharmacy, he would regularly hear about people having to drive to Ottawa for appointments and they were scrambling to find drivers.

“And a lot of people don’t like driving in the city, much less if you’re 80 years old. When we were able to do telehealth, dialysis, mammography, wound care, and all these satellite clinics that opened after the connection with Renfrew Victoria, it was huge and it is to this day.”

Mr. Briggs noted SFMH was one of the first hospitals to introduce the EPIC electronic health records system, which was tough to integrate the first few years, but today other hospitals are jumping on board knowing it was the right way to go.

“We were kind of a leader in that category, which I think speaks a lot to the leadership at the hospital at the time,” he remarked.    

No Confidentiality

Dr. Cybulski said when the hospital opened in 1960, the ED consisted of one room with a narrow metal table where they would see their patients. The waiting room was right beside it and you could see through a door what was going on.

“That’s where I started and confidentiality, to me, was a huge issue at that time,” he recalled. “I didn’t have any place else to go except the washroom with the patient, if I wanted real confidentiality.”

He said the current ER is 37 years old, noting while it was sort of state-of-the-art when it opened, it still lacked confidentiality, and waiting room area.

“It wasn’t well thought out, either by design or by not knowing better,” he commented.

  Despite knowing confidentiality did not exist and there was no extra space to change that, the staff soldiered on seeing between 5,000 to 6,000 patients a year in the ED.

“Now, we’re approximately 11,000,” he said. “This went down during the COVID outbreak but has gone up again.”

He said the ED accounts for approximately 63 per cent of the patient interaction at SFMH.

Dr. Cybulski said he was aware of council being involved with physician recruitment, adding it is extremely hard to recruit doctors to communities without hospitals close by.

“The hospital is a potential attraction for new recruits,” he stressed.

He knows of many patients who would not have survived without the ED at St. Francis, adding he has often thought about how long it would be in each month before someone died if the facility was not there.

“And there was hardly a single month when I had at least one patient that would have died on my watch,” he said.   

He cited examples of cases where the hospital literally saved lives.

He said when an ill patient must travel by ambulance to Pembroke, it seems to take hours rather than minutes.

With Huntsville being 153 kilometres away, 95 km to Pembroke, and 86 km to Pembroke, and Bancroft not having any better facilities, it makes a strong case for a modern, well-equipped ER in the middle of the Highway 60 corridor.

Dr. Cybulski identified numerous areas where improvements are required, re-iterating concerns over the lack of privacy/confidentiality, limited space, concerns with infection control and occupational health.

Proposed Improvements

Mrs. Gienow shared some of the details of the proposed project, noting it includes not only drastic improvements to the overall design of the ED, but a 6,000 square foot addition to the building as well.

“That will help address critical concerns with privacy, infection control and space,” she explained. “All exam rooms will be self-contained, so no more curtained partitions separating the exam rooms.

“The triage room and registration area will both be enclosed and there will also be a quiet room for those in emotional distress, so a counselling area for psychological distress,” she added. “There will be a much larger central communications centre for staff and sightlines will be enhanced. You’re going to see a lot of glass walls.”

There will be privacy blinds that can be drawn, a separate entrance and waiting area for the ED, a designated space for EMS personnel, and the ambulance bay will be enclosed so patients are no longer exposed to the elements.

“More space is important in cases of trauma, there will be a wall separating the major treatment room and procedure room that can slide open to allow more space. Also, there will be a dedicated medical and equipment room.

“And also, a room for medication,” she continued. “There will be a dedicated isolation room, with a private washroom to address infection control and decontamination space.”

There will also be provisions for clean and dirty utility spaces.

Mrs. Gienow said there will be a 6,000 square foot renovation of the existing AC clinic which offers outpatient services like blood transfusions, telemedicine appointments, wound care, IV therapy, and more.

“The renovations will include a separate waiting area just for the outpatient services,” she noted. “There’ll be additional exam rooms, change area, sub-waiting area, and new telemedicine consultation room.”

She shared a video of the proposed improvements that highlighted all the areas for council.

The Campaign

Mrs. Gienow said planning for the “growing together” campaign commenced back in 2021 and in June 2023 the “quiet phase” of the campaign was launched.

“We’ve been working with a team of seven community volunteers who ae currently reaching out to individuals and businesses within the area that have the capacity to make larger gifts,” she explained. “So, we’re continuing to work through this process until we raise approximately 70 to 80 per cent, and at that time, we would launch into the “public phase” and introduce the campaign to the community at a ground-breaking event.

“At that point we would invite the entire community to help us raise the remainder of the funds.”

She said the cost of the project is currently projected at $20.4 million and the local expected share is $2.7 million. She noted $1.7 of that amount is for the 90-10 cost share with the Ministry of Health, for the actual build, and another $1 million for furnishings and equipment, which the community is 100 per cent responsible for.

“So, this is where our fundraising efforts come in with the support of our always generous community,” she remarked.

The Ask

Mr. Briggs said the Foundation appreciates what past councils have done in terms of support over the years, noting in 2013 there was a $50,000 donation to an equipment campaign.

He re-iterated the campaign has been in the “quiet phase”, adding there are only so many individuals and businesses to solicit from.

“We’ve done very well, but we’re asking for a donation from you as well,” he said.

Dr. Cybulski said prior to amalgamation, Barry’s Bay, Sherwood, Jones and Burns and other neighbouring townships always supported the hospital because they realized its importance. He noted just recently the owner of a small contracting business who he knows has a mortgage, presented him with a cheque for $10,000.

“We have received very good support from the community, and this touched me more than a $100,000 donation,” he remarked.

  Based on figures received, Mr. Briggs said if council supported the request for $50,000 over three years, it would equate to approximately $5 per household per year based on 3,284 households.      

“We do appreciate all the never-ending demands on council, we’re very well aware of that and

we’re aware of the challenges in a small community. We’re also very much aware of the importance of our hospital to the continued success of our community, so . . .

“That is essentially our ask,” he added.

He concluded by noting the hospital is essential to everything in the community as it employees 159 people with an annual payroll of $8 million, it helps school enrollment and sustainability, it helps with physician recruitment, it helps other healthcare partners, it boosts local business, and even helps tourism.              

 Mayor Mark Willmer thanked the trio for their presentation, saying council will discuss the request prior to budget at the end of February.

“I really appreciate and recognize the importance of the hospital, as all of council does,” he said. 

The Timeline

Councillor Shelley Maika asked what the timeline was for the project in terms of shovels in the ground, and if the government funding has been secured.

“There is guaranteed funding, announcements have been made,” Mrs. Gienow replied. “The hospital received two approvals last summer that had to do with their planning block schematic, and now they’re into the technical drawings stage.

“They’re hoping to submit that soon, and from there, there is an approval process with the Ministry of Health,” she added. “And granted that is approved, they move into the tender stage. The project is moving along at a very nice pace.”

She said the hospital is tentative about putting an actual date on the project but is confident this is the right time for the campaign to be underway. 

Mayor Willmer pointed out the trio will also be making presentations to five other municipalities with similar asks. Mrs. Gienow said they have confirmed delegations at Killaloe, Hagarty and Richards and South Algonquin townships, and will also be reaching out to Brudenell, Lyndoch and Raglan, and North Algona Wilberforce.

“And we are in discussions with Hastings right now,” she noted.    

She said the Foundation will announce what has been raised in the current campaign when the public phase begins.