The idea is to provide a home for our senior citizens, not an institution.
That was the key message delivered by Don Kindopp, a member of the Hearthstone Community Campaign committee that has taken on the challenge of raising $8 million to kickstart construction activity for a new regional nursing home to replace the nearly 50-year-old Estevan Regional Nursing Home.
The committee members were all smiles Monday morning as they welcomed Estevan City and surrounding rural municipality representatives to the lower level conference room at Spectra Credit Union to announce that the commitment level both in cash and pledges was now in excess of $4.6 million, and counting.
"Each municipality announced a five-year financial commitment to the Hearthstone Community Campaign by pledging one-half of a mill in their local mill rates to this project," said Kindopp, who opened the brief session that was attended by about 40 people.
As the fundraising reach extends beyond the nearby RMs, the commitment being sought will be one-quarter of one mill since it was noted that the more distant municipal governments will also be supporting other long term care facilities in their respective regions.
But for now, the $3.4 million in total pledged financial commitments are coming from the City of Estevan and the RMs of Estevan, Coalfields, Cymri, Cambria, Browning and Benson.
Kindopp said that the required $8 million represents 20 per cent of the anticipated $40 million it will cost to build a new 80-bed long term care facility that will feature home-like environments for the region's elderly citizens. The current provincial funding formula for long term facilities stipulates that the supporting communities raise 20 per cent of the total cost and the provincial government funds the rest.
"We probably need a 100 bed facility to meet future needs, but the local health region can only assign us 80," said Coun. Roy Ludwig who sits on the local committee as the City's representative. He was referring to a provincial edict that allows health regions to allocate long term care beds according to population served. The new facility would merely be replacing the beds that would be vacated with the closure of the ERNH.
Kindopp noted that when the ERNH opened 46 years ago, it fit the needs of the day which were more institutional in nature with long hallways, small shared rooms and shared bathrooms and one main dining and activity area.
"Today we have improved models and we need to have one designed here that supports human dignity and contact with society, one where plants, animals, children and the public are welcomed ... one that beats loneliness, one where elders can give as well as receive care, one with an environment that provides opportunity for more unexpected and exciting happenings for its residents. Human growth need not be separated from human life," Kindopp said in his opening remarks.
"Our original committee borrowed a motto or mission statement that we read over a transit station in Los Angeles, it said 'vision to see, faith to believe and courage to do' so we're going to raise $8 million," Kindopp said. He then said that early fundraising efforts had already netted the committee $1.4 million and the committed five-year pledges of approximately $3.2 million from the RMs and Estevan, would lift that total to the $4.6 million range.
Those attending the announcement and representing their respective councils were: Gary St. Onge, City of Estevan; Kelly Lafrentz, RM of Estevan; Stan Lainton, RM of Coalfields; Dave Hoffort, RM of Benson; Pius Loustel, RM of Browning; Harvey Schindel, RM of Cymri and Robert Adams, RM of Cambria.
The Sun Country Health Region is currently replacing outdated nursing home facilities in Radvile, Redvers and Kipling. The local committee said they felt that the Estevan project should and would move onto the priority list this year since recent needs assessments completed by the Resource Planning Group for Sun Country have revealed that the typical size of a the current residential room at ERNH is 45 per cent smaller than provincial standards as are the doorways, halls and storage areas since they cannot accommodate modern equipment including lifts. Non-private bathrooms are another concern and staff areas,including office and medication areas, are simply too cramped.
There is also no designated activity room at the ERNH, it was pointed out and while the facility was structurally sound, it failed to meet most of today's expectations.
Ludwig said during a post-announcement interview, that land has already been acquired for the new facility, that being a donation from St. Joseph's Hospital since the new nursing home would be built adjacent to the hospital and probably feature a direct access wing to the primary care facility.
Ludwig and Kindopp said the committee will be branching out to do a second round of contact with designated industry leaders in the community to see what interest there is there to support the new facility.
Ludwig noted that "we went over the top in raising funds for Spectra Place, the new events complex, but this is a different demographic because we're probably appealing to older people now, those who appreciate what we're trying to do with this project. The Spectra Place project had youth and the sports community on side for that one." Ludwig, it was noted, also served on the fundraising committee for Spectra Place.
Kindopp said following a second round of contacts with the large industrial complexes, the committee will focus on the smaller businesses and a general public appeal starting in late April or early May.
