Hub Staff

Construction on Saugeen Memorial Hospital's new Emergency Room and Laboratory expansion project is set to begin next month.

Southampton's Emergency Room is the second busiest within the Grey Bruce Health Services system with over 16,000 visits annually and the new expansion will result in three and a half times more space, with 12 new rooms, nine treatment rooms, two ambulatory care rooms and a dedicated decontamination room; with the Lab doubling its current size.

“It's very exciting for all of us,” said Hospital Manager, Donna Chappelle April 27. “We've been able to essentially empty the front of the building,” she said. “We've moved physio, it is now upstairs for our outpatient use and we have moved the Lab into where physio was, so we're ready to go.”

Full services at the hospital will continue as normal throughout the construction and most of the disruption to patient flow has already taken place with the Lab and Physio moves. “None of our capabilities will be changed at all,” said Chappelle.

“The only change that will take place is that we're going to close the front entrance way so people will be parking more in the back and entering through the back.” Chappelle said, adding that there will be appropriate signage to make it clear where patients need to go.

“The emergency door does not change for our emergency patients,” said Chappelle.

This $10 million project is scheduled to be completed by 2018 with the contract going to a Vaughan-based firm, Maystar General Contractors. “We hope to be finished and moved into our new emerg and new lab in two years,” said Chappelle.

A ground breaking ceremony is set to take place on Thursday, May 5, with construction starting in a few weeks' time.