We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Ama Asiedu has joined our practice as a full service Family Physician and staff physician at Soldiers Memorial Hospital in Middleton. Dr. Asiedu joined our team last week and is accepting new patients from the 811 Need a Family Practice Registry. Please join us in warmly welcoming Dr. Asiedu to our team!
Once again we are thrilled to announce the addition of another family physician to our clinical team at Middleton Collaborative Practice. Dr. Omorede Osayande has opened her family practice with us this week, and will also be providing inpatient hospitalist coverage as a staff physician at Soldiers Memorial Hospital in Middleton. Dr. Osayande will be accepting patients from the 811 Need a Family Practice Registry. Dr. Osayande and her family are enjoying their transition to Middleton and we hope they feel so welcome they will plan to stay long term in our community.
We are excited to welcome resident physician Dr. Lydia Melanson who will be based in Middleton while she completes her Family Medicine Residency training over the next two years. Please note: resident physicians share in the care of patients in our practice but do not take on their own patients. Welcome to the Valley, Dr. Melanson!Welcome, Dr. Makramalla!
As part of “The New Deal”, Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation Vice Chair, John Smith presents a $100,000. ‘cheque’ to Valley Regional Hospital Foundation’s Executive Director, Ellen Crowley as the first instalment of SMHF’s $320,000. commitment to funding the new CT Scanner at VRH. Hospital Foundations working together for better healthcare in the Annapolis Valley!
The New Deal Part One – Primary Health Care Centre
Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation embarked on a $1 million fundraising campaign in 2019 to help build the new Primary Health Care Centre in Middleton. The project was announced by then Premier Stephen McNeil and construction commenced at the site adjacent to Soldiers Memorial Hospital.
When the announcement was made, Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation engaged community groups, provincial and municipal government, businesses, and members of the community to help with the fundraising efforts. Major contributions were received from local residents, community groups, Town of Middleton, the Counties of Annapolis and Kings, and many others.
The project was completed on time and over $2 million dollars under budget, allowing the Primary Health Care Centre to open in December of 2020. Following the opening of the Primary Health Care Centre, the Board of Directors for Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation searched for other ways to raise money on a building that was now fully operational.
Because the project was completed significantly under budget and the fundraising efforts had been curtailed due to the pandemic, Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation, with support of our local MLAs, presented an alternative funding arrangement to Nova Scotia Health. Initially, Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation committed to raise $1 million to support the project. In agreement with the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness and Nova Scotia Health, the Foundation will now contribute a total of $500,000 to the project from monies received through pledges and donations toward the project.
The additional $500,000 will go toward funding new equipment and programs at Soldiers Memorial Hospital and Valley Regional Hospital, which serves patients from the entire Valley region.
Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation would like to thank the donors who contributed to the construction of the Primary Health Care Centre, which has recently been renamed ‘Middleton & Area Family Health Centre’. We are grateful to our local MLAs, Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness, and Nova Scotia Health for their collaboration in making this project a reality and to allow us to redirect monies to fund additional healthcare needs in the Valley.
The New Deal Part Two – Equipment, Programs, and CT Scanner
Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation will be contributing $500,000 to fund new equipment and programs at Soldiers Memorial Hospital and Valley Regional Hospital to improve healthcare services to the members of the Valley region.
Some of the equipment purchased will be vital upgrades, replacing key pieces of equipment that are approaching end of life service. One of the key pieces of equipment Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation, in partnership with Valley Regional Hospital Foundation, will be replacing is a CT Scanner at Valley Regional Hospital. Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation will contribute $326,000 to the purchase of the CT Scanner over three years. We will also purchase seven cardiac monitors for Soldiers Memorial Hospital at a total cost of $165,000.
Summary
Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation will pay $500,000 toward the construction costs of the new Middleton & Area Family Health Centre. Through our negotiations, an additional $500,000 will come from our Foundation for equipment and programs that will directly improve health outcomes for the members of our communities.
We believe this is a positive outcome for all community members and we once again would like to thank Nova Scotia Health and the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness for their support of this New Deal.
Kelly Hutton, Chair
Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation
Donations to Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation can be made by:
Based on a story that originally appeared in the Bridgetown Reader in January 2021:
The new multi-million dollar Middleton & Area Family Health Centre is part of a wide-ranging effort to improve primary health care infrastructure across Nova Scotia. It will better serve the needs of residents of Kingston, Greenwood, Aylesford, Middleton, Bridgetown, Springfield, and other communities of Annapolis County and western Kings County. At nearly six times the size of the old medical clinic, the 12,600 square foot fully accessible facility has 26 exam and consultation rooms and houses the Middleton Collaborative Practice team.
This Collaborative Practice team is made up of family physicians, a nurse, social worker, dietitian, nurse practitioner, and administration staff. Together, they provide a full range of health care services including support to in-patients at Soldiers Memorial Hospital. Recent physician retirements in the region have had a significant impact on the health care needs of our citizens. The new Middleton & Area Family Health Centre will be an important piece of infrastructure to attract more doctors to the area who are looking for a collaborative model in which to practice.
Making our region more inviting to medical students, residents, and international graduates is a critical factor in reaching recruitment goals. When surveyed, most medical students and residents identified their ideal practice type as a group practice with physicians and other health-care providers.
As the Collaborative Practice team grows, it will be able to accept more patients.
The new Middleton & Area Family Health Centre will also provide space to train future physicians and other healthcare professionals. The Middleton Collaborative Practice is part of the Dalhousie Family Medicine Residency program, which allows resident physicians to gain experience working in a rural setting. The new clinic will provide appropriate space for residents to work with the family practice team.
The Valley Region’s Physician training program has had a very successful retention rate. Over the past 10 years, 26 of 29 residents have stayed in the province and 17 of these have continued to practice in the Annapolis Valley.
COMMUNITY EFFORT
Following the announcement of the Primary Health Care Centre– as it was originally called– by then Premier Stephen McNeil in August 2019, Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation committed to a $1 million community campaign as its contribution to the $12 million price tag.
Although the Foundation has been supporting the Hospital’s needs since 1972, this has been the biggest project in its history. The Foundation has had considerable success with the campaign and donations are still being accepted towards it.
Kelly Hutton, Chair of the SMH Foundation’s Board of Directors, says “It was truly heartening to see our local community rally around this new health centre. We are grateful for the support of our donors, community leaders, government, and our local healthcare community for making this exciting project a reality. Looking ahead, I expect it to be a catalyst in recruitment of physicians and other healthcare providers to the mid Annapolis Valley area.”
For more information, please contact the Foundation’s Administrative Assistant, Michael Fairn, at 902 825 4202 or [email protected]
