Barry’s Bay – The largest project in the 64-year history of St. Francis Memorial Hospital is set to begin in 2025 and the good news is, most of the $20.4 million is in place for the expansion to and renovation of the existing emergency department.

Operating under the slogan of growing together ER, a campaign quietly launched last fall to raise money for a new Emergency Department, could soon be changed to succeeding together ER as the local campaign of raising $2.7 is well on its way to reaching its goal.

On a beautiful sunny fall afternoon last Thursday there was a pleasant feeling among the crowd of about 75 people who gathered in a large tent on the hospital grounds for the official launch of the community campaign. When St. Francis Valley Healthcare officials announced the fund had already reached 85 percent of its $2.7 million goal, the news was greeted with applause and smiling faces.

The project, which will go to tender this fall with construction getting underway next spring, is the largest ever undertaken at the hospital that opened in the fall of1960. It will include a 6,000-square-foot addition to the ED featuring a dedicated, convenient entrance and separate waiting room, and a 6,000 square foot renovation of the hospital’s ambulatory care clinic.

A new triage area will ensure confidentiality and safety, and a private space will be available for families and patients experiencing emotional or psychological distress.

When the project is completed, physicians and nurses will work from a much larger space resulting in many other benefits.

The project is estimated at $20.4 million with the community’s share set at $2.7 million for bricks and mortar, or 10 percent of the total, and $1 million for furnishings and equipment, 100 percent locally funded.

“This is a historic and monumental time for the Foundation, which has been entrusted to help our local hospital meet its goal to bring the largest construction project it’s ever undertaken since St. Francis Memorial first opened its doors on October 25, 1960,” shared Cheryl Reid, Foundation chair.

The Foundation raises funds to support capital projects, equipment purchases, and services at St. Francis Memorial Hospital, Madawaska Valley Hospice Palliative Care, and the Valley Manor Long-Term Care Home.

Ms. Reid, who was joined at the podium by Kevin Quade, hospital board chair, noted how a group of visionary leaders established a hospital in Barry’s Bay and now, with the generous support of the community, the Foundation continues in their footsteps to ensure the hospital remains for generations to come.

Erin Gienow, Foundation Executive Director, asked the audience to imagine not having a hospital with 24/7 emergency services in their backyard.

“How would your life be different?” she asked. “Would you live here? Would you have chosen to build a cottage here? Would you work here? Would a loved one who required emergency care where a minute can make a difference, still be here?”

Ms. Gienow shared stories of lives being saved because of the hospital’s existence, adding the community is fortunate to have an emergency department in its backyard, but it is more than 30 years old and has outgrown its footprint.

“In fact, patient visits have more than doubled, from 5,000 to 11,000 visits annually,” she shared. “Lack of space is a major concern as is privacy and infection control issues.”

She said the time had come to expand the emergency and ambulatory care departments to ensure healthcare remains close to home for those who need it most.

Dr. Jason Malinowski was beaming with joy on this special day and spoke of the importance of the project to the community and its residents.

“If your child is sick and you have nowhere to turn to, or if you have a slip and a fall, the first place you are going to turn to is the Emergency Department at St. Francis,” he said. “It also applies to tick bite, chainsaw, vaguely unwell, back pain, neck pain, stomach pain, finger pain.

“And while our department does a fine job caring for us, there is certainly room for growth to enhance the patience experience.”

He explained from the beginning of one’s journey to the Emergency Department until they leave with a treatment plan, there is a lack of privacy and confidentiality which hospital officials realize they need to do a better job at addressing.

“All of our patients deserve to register, be triaged in, and be treated in a confidential space,” he said.

Those concerns will be addressed when the redevelopment project is completed.

“A total of 6,000 square feet will be added to the existing building, making way for a private registration area and triage room, and self-contained exam rooms,” he explained. “There will also be a designated space for patients dealing with emotional or psychological distress.”

Dr. Malinowski said while the project will do an excellent job in addressing patient experience, staff will also benefit as the redevelopment will allow for proper sightlines from the communications desk, so healthcare workers can keep an eye on patients at all times. There will also be a new isolation room added, along with a decontamination space, and a new major treatment area.

He said the new ambulatory care clinic will feature an improved flow of services, with additional patient rooms, and a dedicated waiting room and sub-waiting room.

“It’s an exciting and historic time for St. Francis Memorial Hospital,” he said. “Once this renovation and redevelopment is complete, our hospital will be well positioned to not only address present needs but also future considerations, as we estimate the patient numbers and complexities in ER only growing in coming years.”

Greg McLeod, Chief Operating Officer at St. Francis, said the project will not only ensure patients will be cared for in the highest quality workspace, but it also ensures its long-term viability into the future meaning the community will have reliable, high quality health care for decades to come.

He said the project will be completed over two years in two phases with the first phase being the construction of the new ED. When that is completed, the ED will move into the new area and the second phase, which will include the renovation of the old ED, will begin. This will become the new ambulatory care space, waiting room and renovated health records department.

Mr. McLeod said the project has been in the planning stages for several years and will be purpose built for the community’s needs.

“We recognize the construction period will be a bit of a heavy lift,” he said. “It will be like renovating your kitchen while you are trying to make a meal. However, the outcome will be amazing and transformative for our hospital.”

He said the changes have been designed for the needs of the community and the rural area.

Mr. McLeod said the Ministry of Health has been an excellent partner, adding it recognized the project’s importance for the community.

In the next few weeks, a temporary heli-port will be built just east of Barry’s Bay at the site of the Barry’s Bay Airport, which is owned by the family of the late Dr. Henry Chapeskie. This heli-port will serve the hospital during the period of construction and once work is completed, the heli-pad will return to its current location at the hospital.

Campaign Leadership Team

Since last fall, the campaign leadership team – Ray Pastway, Jane Dumas, Dr. Joe Cybulski, Chris Briggs, Robert Howe, Bruce Wilmer and Pat Pilgrim – launched a campaign in the community quietly behind the scenes.

Ms. Gienow explained members met with potential donors, sharing information about the project with an invitation to support it financially.

“Our goal through this quiet phase of the campaign was to raise 70 to 80 percent of the hospital’s local share, which was an ambitious goal,” she said. “It’s been a pleasure working with this team and it’s a little difficult for me to put into words what an inspiration this team has been to work with. We cannot thank you enough for your time, your energy and your passion that you’ve invested in this cause. As a team, we shared many emotions.”

The team was co-chaired by Jane Dumas and Ray Pastway. Ms. Dumas expressed thanks for the generosity of many as exemplified by donations received to date and also praised the campaign team, describing them as awesome.

As a former nurse in the ED at St. Francis, Ms. Dumas attested to the need for the expansion and renovations.

“Today you are ensuring that we will continue to be here to deliver care in an up-to-date, well-equipped Emergency Department whenever it may be needed by you or by someone else,” she said.

Being in the lumber business most of his life, Mr. Pastway said he has seen many businesses come and go but what hasn’t changed is the generosity of the businesses and individuals who remain.

Admitting the process was a bit intimidating at times, he noted a couple of things made their task easier: the cause, and people’s openness to learn about the project.

“Thank you for sharing your personal stories and motivations to give,” he said. “They inspired us to keep moving towards our goal. Your generosity has been remarkable and for that, we are most grateful.”

Yakabuski

Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke MPP began his remarks by giving thanks to those in the community who came up with a vision almost 70 years ago to build a hospital.

“If it didn’t go back then, we wouldn’t be doing an addition to the hospital in the mid 80s, we wouldn’t be doing a new emerg redevelopment today,” he said. “Because if we hadn’t done what happened back then, there wouldn’t be a hospital here.

“Five hospitals in Renfrew County folks. Would we have one if not for the visionaries and those people who made that commitment way back then … H.J. Chapeskie, Msgr. Biernaski. They had a vision; they had a dream. And they weren’t going to let go of that dream, and the community embraced that dream and that’s what was made possible.”

Mr. Yakabuski said the emergency department means much to everyone who grew up in the Bay community, adding when the proposal came forward to the government it was an easy one to talk to then-Health Minister Christine Elliott about funding.

“Our government made an absolute commitment, not just to health care, but to rural health care, by approving the redevelopment of this emergency department here and, as people say to me down in Toronto, in little ol’ Barry’s Bay.”

He said he was pleased to be able to thank those who are so important and integral in making the project happen.

“The province doesn’t go around looking for places to spend money,” he said. “They have to have good, solid proposals from good, solid teams and that is what they got from the folks at St. Francis.”

Besides thanking those people involved in the project, he had words of praise for the many people so committed to the hospital, the people who work there every day, from the medical staff to maintenance and housekeeping, to every single person who plays a role in making the hospital special in the community.