By Cecilia Nasmith/Today’s Northumberland
Mark Oct. 18 on your calendar for a look back at the excitement and triumph of the opening of Northumberland Hills Hospital – just in time for the 20th anniversary of that magical moment.
The late Robert MacCoubrey and Bill Patchett were the powerhouses who spearheaded what was then the biggest fundraising campaign the county had ever seen to replace and consolidate the old Port Hope and Cobourg hospitals. And month by month, progress reports at hospital board meetings kept everyone informed and heightened the excitement.
Twenty years after the big opening, NHH staff, physicians and volunteers invite you to an afternoon and evening of special behind-the-scenes tours, information sharing and fun.
From 3 to 6:30 p.m. that day, the doors are open (and the main front parking lot is free) for demonstrations of health-care and volunteer programs available today, as well as a look at services and supports that are expected to grow in the coming years as our community expands.
Along with hospital staff and physicians, the NHH Auxiliary, Foundation and Patient Advisory Council partners are your hosts in offering guided tours that depart at 15-minute intervals from the Main Street Bistro on the hospital’s main floor (just inside the front entrance). These one-hour tours will cover a number of service areas, including cancer and supportive care, dialysis, laboratory, learning lab, surgical suites, and a range of diagnostic imaging (including MRI, CT, mammography and fluoroscopy units).
Please note that masking is required in patient-care areas.
Before and after tours, you are invited to visit with members of the NHH team in the Bistro, visit information booths from hospital and area partners, and enjoy the music, refreshments and photo displays offered for the occasion.
In conjunction with these celebrations, the NHH 20th Anniversary Working Group is looking forward to releasing the results of NHH’s recent brand refresh.
President and Chief Executive Officer Susan Walsh is looking forward to welcoming in members of the community they serve for this special occasion.
“When Northumberland Hills Hospital opened on Oct. 22, 2003, it did so with the support of an exceptionally generous and involved community,” Walsh said in the press release.
“NHH has grown immensely in that time, both the services we offer and the team of staff, physicians, midwives and volunteers required to deliver them. We are hard at work to grow further in the coming years as local needs continue to rise.
“We would not be able to do any of this without the exceptional support and commitment of this community. Please come out and join us on Oct. 18 to see first-hand all that NHH has to offer today, and learn more about exciting plans for the future.”
Tour space is limited, so anyone interested is urged to RSVP by Oct. 16 to aseymour@nhh.ca or 905-372-6811 ext. 4009.
