Hospital expansion taking shape

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This article was published 26/08/2023 (867 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The crawl space is complete, and the next step in construction is to install the structural steel on the roof at the Brandon Regional Health Centre, according to the CEO of Prairie Mountain Health.

Expansion and renovation of BRHC and the Western Manitoba Cancer Centre began in the fall of 2022, almost three years after the provincial government — under then-premier Brian Pallister — announced nearly $110 million in funding for both projects.

Once completed, the BRHC will have four stories with a new 16-bed intensive care unit up from the current nine, 30 additional medical beds, which will bring the number up to 90 beds, plus a renovation of the existing neonatal intensive care unit with space on the fourth floor for future expansion if needed.

Also being built on the grounds is the Western Manitoba Cancer Centre that began in January 2023.

That 9,400-square-foot expansion will allow for additional exam/procedure rooms and treatment spaces including a new medical linear accelerator, which is used for delivering external beam radiation treatments to patients with cancer.

Additionally, a Centre for Hope will be built to provide support and programs for cancer patients and their families.

Most of the funding to build the Centre of Hope was gifted by a Virden man who wanted to leave a legacy for western Manitobans.

A donation of $3.5 million was made by the late Paul Albrechtsen and his foundation, as the Sun reported in March.

Albrechtsen started Paul’s Hauling trucking company in Virden in the early 1950s and died in 2019.

Overall, construction at BRHC is going well with the new critical care bed tower being a couple weeks ahead of schedule, said Brian Schoonbeart, the CEO of Prairie Mountain Health.

The project is still at the concrete development stage with forming and pouring on the second level floor. Then, Schoonbaert added, construction crews will frame the wall on the main floor.

“The crawl space beneath the building has been completed to the point where the mechanical and electrical trade can start to install their piping and equipment. Work on remaining floors above level 200, along with structural steel to support the roof, will also be some of the next steps with the project,” Schoonbaert said in an email to the Sun.

During a Brandon City Council meeting in April, PMH officials provided an updated timeline of the project, as the Sun reported April 18.

At that time, Debbie Poole, the clinical planning regional lead with PMH, Poole mentioned the January 2026 completion date is subject to change, noting obstacles like supply chain issues.

In addition to funding from the provincial government for the construction and expansion at BRHC, financial contributions have been made by the Brandon Regional Health Care Foundation, the City of Brandon, and the municipalities of Elton, Whitehead and Cornwallis, according to PMH.

» mmcdougall@brandonsun.com

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