Jeremy Walsh — Staff reporter
COBB — Adventist Health staff recently joined local community members at an informational event to detail the St. Helena Hospital Clear Lake Emergency Department renovation and expansion project.
Approximately 40 doctors, hospital staff members and other local luminaries filled Rob Roy Golf Club”s event room on July 21 for an hors d”oeuvre reception and information presentation.
The project is “going to make a difference for Lake County” by “helping improve the quality of life here, beginning with health,” development officer Melissa Nevin Kinsel told the audience at the reception. The two-year project broke ground on July 5. Upon its completion, the project will add five new patient monitoring rooms and bring the number of private rooms to 12. An Emergency Department reconfiguration, including a private ambulance entrance, a new welcoming entrance and a remodeled waiting area, will also occur.
All current Emergency Department jobs will remain intact while an additional 22 to 25 will be created.
The high number of Emergency Department visits as well as the projected county population growth for the next 20 years provided some of the impetus to get the project going.
According to hospital figures, “Lake County currently has twice the number of visits to the Emergency Department as the state average.”
Nearly 74 percent of all hospital admissions come through Emergency Department admissions, according to the hospital. The average department wait time is 3.26 hours.
Adventist Health, the hospital”s parent company, provided the lion”s share of the funding for the $12.1 million project. The company”s contribution, coupled with $1 million provided by the Redbud Health Care District, left $3 million needed to complete the project.
As a result, hospital officials have turned to national, state and local sources to raise the necessary funds. To date, approximately $1.2 million has been raised, leaving $1.8 million needed.
“By supporting the Emergency Department expansion project, you will make a difference in the lives of so many people, and maybe your own,” Dr. Paula Dhanda said at the reception. The hospital received a $5,000 pledge and a $500 check for the new Emergency Department during the event.
To learn more visit www.newERforyou.com.
