January 20, 2010 For Immediate Release
Saying Farewell to Memorial Hospital
Sudbury --- The Hôpital régional de Sudbury Regional Hospital (HRSRH) will hold an open house celebrating the proud history of the former Sudbury Memorial Hospital and the institution’s importance to the City of Greater Sudbury and its residents.
“As the HRSRH moves its services to the new one-site acute care hospital, it is important to acknowledge the contributions of these storied institutions and the emotional attachment many people, both staff and public, feel toward them,” says Carol Hartman, Chair of the HRSRH Board of Directors.
“The Sudbury Memorial Hospital has a history dating back to World War II,” states Joe Drago, Chair of the Sudbury Regional Hospital Foundation and long-serving volunteer of the former Memorial Hospital. “Through the years, this has been the home of many medical firsts including the first coronary arterial bypass in Canada, performed by Dr. Paul Field in 1968,” recalls Drago. “While the building may close, the Memorial was always more than bricks and mortar – it was built with the idea of people-focused health care for all of northeastern Ontario – a tradition that will continue at the one site hospital,” he added.
Sudbury Memorial Hospital officially opened its doors in 1956 and has been a leader in cardiac care, notably with Dr. Field’s first open heart surgery in Canada, and also the first beating heart off-pump coronary bypass surgery in Canada, performed by Dr. Avdesh Mathur in 1991.
The long legacy of the institution will be remembered on Thursday, January 21st, 2010. An open house for the public will be held in the evening from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the cafeteria of the Memorial Site, providing an opportunity for former staff and the public to reflect on the past, visit displays and memorabilia, and sign a memory wall.
“Hospitals are by their nature places where momentous occasions often occur in peoples’ lives – beginnings, endings, great changes. This is a momentous time in the history of the city’s hospital system for the very same reasons,” stated Dr. Denis Roy, HRSRH President and CEO.
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The Hôpital régional de Sudbury Regional Hospital is grateful for the ongoing support of the community through its foundations, the Sudbury Regional Hospital Foundation and the Northern Cancer Research Foundation.
Contact:
Sean Barrette
Media Relations Officer
(705) 523-7118
For further information about the HRSRH and its services, visit our website, www.hrsrh.on.ca