Humboldt General Hospital breaks ground on patient wing, remodel

WINNEMUCCA - On April 16, officials at Humboldt General Hospital ceremonially broke the ground that-in just under two years-will result in a new patient wing.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the new patient wing and remodel for the facility, located at 118 E. Haskell St. in Winnemucca, took place on the grassy knoll between Medical Office Building 1 (located at the corner of Haskell and Mizpah streets) and the hospital.

Members of the Humboldt County Hospital District Board of Trustees were on hand. The gathering also included representatives from Ascent Construction, which was awarded the bid to construct the new wing March 27, and CTA Architects Engineers.

CTA is the same firm that designed the hospital's first-phase construction, the new medical office building expansion and hospital remodel which opened to the public in July 2011.

Mike Sheppard, owner of Michael Clay Corporation, also took part. He is the owner-rep for Humboldt General Hospital and will be on-site daily to represent the hospital's interests.

Mayor Di An Putnam opened the groundbreaking ceremony with a warm welcome to all partners in the project's construction.

She reflected back on Humboldt General Hospital's beginnings - a hospital that had little more than 3,000 feet. More than 100 years later, she said the current facility has grown to 10 times that size and more.

As the community has grown, so has the hospital, said Putnam, not just to meet the needs of a greater populace, but also to provide local residents with the most advanced technology available.

Putnam commented, "The hospital is indicative of where we were, where we're at and where we're going."

"We have a great community," she told the group, adding that the hospital's expansion adds one more reason for people to love and want to be part of the Winnemucca community.

CTA Project Manager Connie St. George also addressed the crowd. She commented on what a privilege it was for her company to help upgrade the hospital facility.

She said, "Thank you for trusting us to be your partner in this project."

Trent Strayhorn, the project manager from Ascent Construction, said he was looking forward to partnering with the community on the construction and upgrade of the patient wing. He added he hoped the community will like its fine, new facility.

Humboldt General Hospital CEO/Administrator Jim Parrish took time to thank those involved with the project, especially HGH Chief Nursing Officer Darlene Bryan and her nursing leadership and staff who spent so many hours working with CTA to arrive at the best possible design for patient care.

Parrish also thanked CTA, Ascent and Sheppard, and noted that the hospital is excited and motivated to provide the Humboldt County community and surrounding areas with the most advanced and best patient care possible.

"That's why we're here," he said.

The $5.7 million project will renovate 7,000 square feet and add 5,600 square feet to the hospital's main patient area. Construction is expected to take 700 days.

Following construction, the acute wing will have two bariatric rooms for larger patients, two isolation rooms, a two-chair infusion room and a three-bay Intensive Care Unit right off the nurses' station.

A satellite nurses' station also will be included for those times when the acute wing is full.

Perhaps one of the most important features of the expansion/remodel is the end of double occupancy rooms.

Due to federal patient privacy laws and stricter infection control guidelines, all of the rooms in the acute wing will be single occupancy once the project is complete.

The project also will allow for computerization that will result in greater patient monitoring by nurses and physicians.

It will also solve many gender issues, which have resulted because of the hospital's current double occupancy rooms.

The plan calls for 19 beds.

Parrish said the construction process will take place in three phases.

The first phase will result in a major expansion to the acute department. Patients will then be moved to the new patient wing to make way for the next phase, which will include remodeling of the former patient wing.

Eventually, those two sections will be joined and crews will finish with a third phase remodel of several other, connecting areas of the hospital.

The hospital will pay for the remodel with cash it has reserved for the project over the past several years.

"We are excited for this next phase in our improvements to Humboldt General Hospital," said Parrish.

"We are fortunate to have the funding and the community support to make this happen."

He added, "We have confidence that in the end, this expansion and remodel will result in better patient care, which is our main focus in all that we do."

For more information on the Humboldt General Hospital Patient Wing and Remodel construction project, please call (775) 623-5222, ext. 123.

Information is also available by visiting Humboldt General Hospital's website at www.hghospital.ws.

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