News Releases

2008

Construction on time, on budget for new Petawawa health centre. Late February completion date expected for new Petawawa Centennial Family Health Centre.

by Lisa Brazeau

There's still work to be done before the first patients walk through the doors of the new Petawawa Centennial Family Health Centre. But that said, construction is well past the half way mark for the new $2.225-million facility, which is expected to be finished by the end of February, said Special Projects Manager Ed Schulz of Jp2g Consultants Inc.
"The project is moving along at a steady pace, and I'm pleased with the work progress being done by the local contractor Wade General Contracting and the sub-contractors," he said last week during a site visit. "I'm looking forward to the official opening and seeing this facility become a reality for the people of the Town of Petawawa."
With much of the exterior completed, the focus has shifted to the interior details - wiring, plumbing, drywall. The ceiling in parts of the building, now taking shape on a five acre piece of property in Civic Centre Road, towers above the poured floors, each room mapped out by steel framework, the reception area/waiting room notable for its gently curving wall that will eventually hold a bank of large windows.

The finished facility will feature small and oversized examination rooms, treatment rooms, offices for midwives, and a practitioners office large enough to accommodate cubicles for 15. "It's a dream come true," said PCFHC Board Treasurer Tom Mohns, gazing around the building's expansive layout. "When we first started, I never dreamed we'd see something like this, and not in my wildest dreams did I think we'd be at this stage so fast. But the contract is signed, the money is flowing, we're on time and we're on budget."

The PCFHC board of directors received the first installment of Ministry of Health and Long Term Care funding, 50 per cent of approximately $1.925-million for 9,276 square feet of the building, last month, he noted. An additional 2,854 square feet is being paid for through a financial commitment from the Town of Petawawa.

Once construction is complete, the ministry will pay for the operating costs of its portion of the building, including staff salaries, and the board will be responsible for the town-funded portion, which has been designated for a Laboratory, an X-Ray department, a programming and teaching area as well as optional space to accommodate allied health services.
"I can't believe how big it is and how many rooms we're going to have - it's just incredible to see the capacity we'll be able to provide," said PCFHC Executive Director Susan Foran.

The centre currently operates out of a 3,600 square foot renovated duplex on CFB Petawawa's north townsite and offers the services of three full-time doctors, two part-time doctors and two nurse practitioners, two nurses, and two associate mid-wives.
The new facility will be able to accommodate six physicians, four nurse practitioners, a social worker, dietician, pharmacist, a nurse educator, practical nurses, a volunteer coordinator and administrative personnel, and midwives.

Foran and PCFHC Administrator Bonnie Summers have been able to provide input on the finer details, as well as monitoring the new centre's evolution from paper to bricks and mortar. "It's a learning experience for us for one thing, but it's also so important to have input and to learn about the details from start to finish because we'll have a good idea of how to maintain it on a regular basis," Foran explained. "We're going to have to fill the contracts for janitorial and maintenance services so we need to understand how everything came together and how it works so we can properly maintain it."

The ministry will also provide money for basic equipment and furniture for its portion of the building, explained Mohns, but the board will be responsible for raising the money to furnish the town-funded part.

The PCFHC was one of the first of 150 Family Health Teams announced in April of 2005 by the ministry to provide primary health care in areas with few or no physician services.

The PCFHC's mandate is to provide primary health care to the residents of the Town of Petawawa. To become a new patient at the PCFHC, individuals must meet the following criteria: have an Ontario Health Card; do not currently have a family physician; and are one of the following: resident of Petawawa, resident of Laurentian Valley, resident of Laurentian Hills, a CFB Petawawa military dependent (regardless of where you live), or an immediate family member of a current patient at the PCFHC (ie. spouse, child, parent), New patients meeting this criteria must complete a registration form and book a 'meet and greet' appointment.