Groundbreaking ceremonies were held yesterday for a new 61,200-square foot $43.6-million hospital in Kimball.
The event kicked off an 18-month construction schedule to replace the existing 70-year old hospital about 2 blocks away.
The new hospital will be on what was the playground of the former West Elementary school. The bulk of the funding – $34.2-million – is from a pair of USDA loans, but there’s also $6.4-million in county revenue bonds and $2.2-million from a capital campaign.
Speakers at the groundbreaking praised the modern design of the new hospital and touted its expected positive impact on Kimball.
Hospital CEO Ken Hunter used the opportunity praise his staff, saying the “hospital of the future is more than bricks and mortar (because while) up-to-date facilities matter a lot, what matters most is the people staffing the hospital and operating the equipment.”
The new Kimball Health Services facility will be triple the size of the current hospital with larger patient rooms, wider corridors, and in-hour MRI and CT scanner services among other improvements.
There’s also an expanded ER department, covered ambulance bay, and larger physical therapy department with a walking track and a kitchen for home-based activity therapy.
The new Kimball hospital will also have space for future services such as cardiac rehabilitation and chemotherapy infusion as well as expanded surgical options.