Opening New Doors in the Western Zone

An ambulance transports a patient from the old Western Memorial Regional Hospital to the new facility at 100 Health Care Crescent.

A hospital is a community landmark for its residents – it’s a place where new lives are welcomed to the world; a place where treatment and care are provided to improve residents’ health and well-being; and a place where loved ones say their final farewell.

For those who work there, it often becomes a home away from home or provides a second family as they lean on and support one another on the health-care journeys of their patients.

Intensive Care unit staff at the last shift change before patient move day, and procedure unit team members.

The new Western Memorial Regional Hospital, which opened to the public on June 2, will build on the former site’s reputation and legacy. The new site brings opportunities to continue improving health-care services for our patients, clients and residents as the site represents the future of health care in the Western Zone of NL Health Services.

From the old to new: a hallway in the former Western Memorial Regional Hospital in the same scene in the new hospital.

As the former Western Memorial Regional Hospital closed its doors and the doors opened at the new hospital, some of our employees, physicians, volunteers, and patients reflected on the last 40 years with mixed emotions. They recalled the good-natured patients and memorable conversations shared; the educational moments and collaboration among colleagues; the light-hearted exchanges and celebrations with both staff and patients; and the thousands of patients cared for in the hospital. Here are their stories. 

Ruth Banks, Regional Renal Care Facilitator

“I’m excited to move over to the new building. It will be good for our patients. When this unit opened, we had 12 treatment spaces. In the new hospital, we will have 24 spaces. We have new equipment that will improve the experience for our patients. One of the best improvements is that we have washrooms that are close by for our dialysis patients. We have true isolation rooms for people who come in sick. We call this our dialysis family. Many of our patients call us their second family, as some of them see us more than they see their families if they are here three times a week. We get to see each other’s kids grow up and get to know their families over the years.”

Jim Day, Medical Laboratory Technologist

“I started my career almost 46 years ago working at this bench as a medical lab technologist. I later transferred over to the histology cytology area. I’ve been here for long enough, so I’m comfortable here. But I’m happy to be going into a new environment – the lab is a fantastic space. What I’ll remember about the old hospital is all the people that I’ve worked with over the years. We all had a wonderful experience working together as a team.”  

Jessica Fradsham, Medical Laboratory Technologist

“The new lab space is beautiful and bright! It makes such a big difference for us working here. Our new track system is the second of its kind in Canada. The system will remove the caps from specimens, separate the specimen components in the tube, bring them to the instruments for testing and store them away once complete. This technology will help us prioritize our work on other important things and focus on our patients.” 

Elise Lasaga and Lillian George, Volunteers

“We started volunteering here together five years ago. When my husband passed away, I [Elise] wanted to spend my time doing something positive. It’s nice for seniors to volunteer – it’s very rewarding. When I’m done with my volunteer shift, I feel good for having helped patients and their families. It’s a rewarding feeling just to volunteer no matter what the business is or where it is.”  

Dr. Brendan Lewis, Orthopedic Surgeon, Chief of Staff

“I’ve been an orthopedic surgeon for 33 years. So, we started off in a little, small cubby hole …and then graduated to this big space, which was fantastic. But, you know, it’s been a nice road. And it’s been a wonderful opportunity to be able to work here and serve our patients. It’s kind of sad leaving here. But again, I’m very excited about the fact that the new hospital is open. This is something long needed for the people of the Western Zone. The new hospital is incredibly modern – it’s state of the art. Everything is new, so much is computerized.”  

Sandra Lush, Regional Manager – Spiritual Health and Ethics

“Western Memorial Hospital is more than a workplace to me.  It’s a part of my story.  In 2009, I started working at WMRH hospital as Regional Manager of Pastoral Care.  In the last 15 years, I have broken bad news to families in the ER, sat with patients in the ICU, sat and prayed with families while their loved ones were in surgery.  I have shared my story over the years with nursing students in hopes to inspire them in their future work, welcomed new staff in orientation and taught thousands of staff BLS (Basic Life Support). There is so much to working in health care …there are the years of experiences, conversations, learning, times of laughter, tears, healing and recovery, good news stories, caring for those that most need a friendly smile or a caring voice, co-workers that have become like family, interactions with patients and their families.…all of which have contributed to my story.”

Jen Maloney, CT Technologist

“I have been working here since 2006. The new hospital is amazing! The medical imaging space is much bigger than we have at the old hospital. The technology is state-of-the-art and brand new. We’re implementing new procedures and protocols to help us adopt this new technology. I think the new technology will help with quicker scan times and get more patients in and out of the department quickly. The quality of the images these new machines capture – it’s night and day. We can do so much more on CT machines, and now we’re going to have two new ones! 

Dr. Stephen Murphy, Nephrologist

“I have worked here for 24 years, so there are many mixed feelings about leaving this hospital. Working somewhere for so long, you develop routines, and you get comfortable. In some ways, it feels like I’m starting a new job! There is a lot of history in this building, but it’s served its life. The new hospital will be better for our patients, their families, and our staff. They deserve this beautiful facility to work in and receive care in. Information technology has improved a lot. Technology has changed dramatically since this hospital was built. When I first came here, for example, there were no computers – everything was done on paper… We’re in a different era, and the new hospital was designed with that in mind. What I’ll remember about the old hospital will be the patients and my colleagues. A lot of staff have helped out with dialysis over the years. We’ve had nurses work their entire careers in this unit and retire out of here.”

Lisa Ryan, Dialysis Patient

“I’ve been receiving dialysis at this hospital for 16 years. I have seen a lot of patients come and go, a lot of nurses and doctors come and go, too. The patients and staff here – we know each other’s families; we’ve watched them through many stages of life. They’re like a second support system. The staff here are amazing, and I have received amazing care here from nurses like Paulette. But we’re all excited about the new hospital. When I walked in the new facility for the first time, I didn’t feel like I was in Corner Brook. I felt like I was in a major city like Edmonton.”

Patricia Simms, Ward Clerk

“The new hospital is beautiful. We will have more space to do our jobs. Everything is different – the way nurses nurse now has changed so much from when the old hospital was built. I’m proud to be part of the move!”  

Dr. Gavin White, Radiologist

“I came from Ireland for a locum position for a month, but I never left. I love it here. There’s nowhere else I’d want to work. The new hospital is another reason why I’ll stay.”

NL Health Services’ – Western Zone staff and physicians put in an incredible amount of effort and planning to ensure a smooth transition to the new regional hospital in Corner Brook. It was an impressive team effort supported by our community partners, provincial government, Western Regional Hospital Foundation, Cancer Care Foundation and the builder. Thank you to all involved!

Be sure to check out our video and discover the modern Western Memorial Regional Hospital.