Hospital addition nearly finished

Belmond Hospital Administrator Nancy Gabrielson gave members of BIDCO a pictorial tour Monday night of the new $26 million addition at the Belmond Medical Center.

The audience was able to see photos of four floors, from the basement to the roof, and just about everything in between.

Gabrielson said the final touches are being put on the facility. The elevators are finished and working. The helicopter stop on the roof has passed inspection. The initial cleaning has been done, but a more critical cleaning remains before patients can move in and the emergency and operating rooms can be put into service. There are several small jobs being finished, and several state inspections must be completed before the building can be occupied. While the kitchen is being finished, meals are being brought in from the Rehabilitation Center of Belmond.

We hope to move patients into the new facility by the end of May or first part of June, Gabrielson said. But Ive learned not to get to get my hopes up because there are always delays. We still plan to have our public open house sometime in June. We will be taking down most of the fence around the building and getting the parking on Main Street opened back up.

Gabrielson said extra volunteers are being sought for the next few months to work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (hours are flexible). These volunteers will show visitors where to find things in the new addition.

A financial report from the first three quarters of the current fiscal year show that business at BMC continues to be strong. There have been 1,644 patient days in the hospital compared to 1,110 for the nine-month period one year ago. There have been 316 surgeries compared to 267 last year. Gross revenue is up over 18 percent.

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Hospital addition nearly finished