Neepawa set to break ground on new hospital

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This article was published 16/10/2022 (758 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NEEPAWA — Work on Neepawa’s new hospital — complete with 63 acute care inpatient beds, an expanded emergency department and newly established renal services — will begin in two weeks, the province announced.

At a Monday news conference near a recently harvested field on the east side of Neepawa, Manitoba Health Minister Audrey Gordon said the facility to be built on the site is part of the province’s efforts to build a stronger health-care system in Westman.

“Investing in health-care services in communities throughout Manitoba will not only improve the physical health and well-being of Manitobans, but their mental health as well,” Gordon said.

The new facility will be located on recently rezoned land east of Lions Riverbend Campground, near Provincial Trunk Highway 16. In addition to more acute care beds — Neepawa’s current hospital has 38 — the centre will feature a trauma room, stretcher and ambulance bay, and enhanced space for surgery, diagnostics, palliative care programs and various outpatient services, including chemotherapy.

Construction crews will set up on the site in the first week of November, and work on the facility is expected to begin in the new year. The facility, which will cost $127 million, should be complete in 2025, the province said.

Prairie Mountain Health is “extremely pleased” to move forward on the new hospital, said chief executive officer Brian Schoonbaert.

“Neepawa and the surrounding area is growing,” Schoonbaert said. “The new health centre, with much expanded physical space… will allow those services to grow alongside the population in this region.”

The health authority has worked closely with staff and physicians at the current hospital to hear their thoughts on what they would like to see in the new facility, Schoonbaert said.

Plans for additional communications with staff, community leaders and residents will take place soon.

“We’ve tried to do as much engagement as we can,” Schoonbaert said.

The new centre will hopefully help the town retain residents, Neepawa Mayor Brian Hedley said.

With a population of 5,685, Neepawa was named the third-fastest growing municipality in Manitoba and the 13th-fastest in Canada, according to Statistics Canada’s 2021 census data.

“Having been here for 25 years, health care was always a concern… not only for the community, but for all of us, so this is going to secure a lot of people being able to remain in Neepawa for the rest of their lives,” Hedley said.

Monday’s announcement was part of the province’s $812-million investment in building, expanding and renovating health-care facilities across Manitoba, officials said.

— Brandon Sun