Alton Memorial Hospital Holding Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony March 10
TOP: The Duncan Wing will be unveiled to visitors during a ribbon-cutting ceremony from 2 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, March 10.
BOTTOM: Paul Lauschke, former chairman of the Alton Memorial Hospital board of directors, with Kathleen Duncan, left, and Jeana Hutchinson. The hospital�s new wing is named after the Duncan family and the Hutchinson Lobby is named in honor of Jeana�s late husband Tom, a longtime AMH board member. PHOTO BY RUSTY INGRAM
(Alton, IL - March 3, 2010) � The unveiling of Alton Memorial Hospital�s Duncan Wing to the community is set for Wednesday, March 10, from 2 to 5 p.m. No reservations are needed to attend.
Guests can take advantage of free valet parking or a shuttle will be running between the main visitors parking lot and hospital beginning at 1:30 p.m. Opening ceremony remarks will be in the AMH cafeteria at 2 p.m., followed by the ribbon cutting outside the 89,000-square-foot Duncan Wing. Refreshments will then be served in the Duncan Wing�s Hutchinson Lobby and tours will be available of the new wing. After six years of planning and two years of construction, there�s plenty to see.
�With a new building comes new opportunities to better serve patients and their families,� says Doug Pytlinski, vice president of administration at AMH.
Private Rooms, Premium Coffee
The newly constructed bed tower includes 76 private rooms -- each with its own patient lift -- six observation rooms, a lab, pharmacy, surgical care, medical care, telemetry and a radiology waiting area.
Kathleen Duncan and her late husband, Sam, donated an artwork collection in late 2007 that sold for almost $700,000 at Ivey-Selkirk Auction House in St. Louis. That was the largest single gift to Alton Memorial�s �Building the Best Care Close to Home� capital campaign that exceeded its $3 million goal and reached $3.5 million. This additional amount allowed for patient lifts to be included in the 76 private rooms of the new wing, which bears the Duncan name.
�I think this is a wonderful honor for the entire family,� says Kathleen Duncan, now 94 years old. �They were all such wonderful people. I�m pleased to know the family name will be associated with this great addition to the hospital.�
The patient lifts in each room will also make the Duncan Wing a state-of-the-art facility when it comes to safety. �The Duncans� gift was not only a great boost to the capital campaign, but it will provide a great benefit to our employees,� says AMH President Dave Braasch. �We value our staff and know the risk of injury that nurses face when moving patients. For the benefit of our staff and patients, we are delighted to be able to include patient lifts in the new wing.�
Visitors also will eventually enjoy a new Starbuck�s coffee bar near the elevators on the ground floor.
Patient Touch Technology
Each of the private rooms will have Patient Touch Technology, a bedside device that patients and their family members can access at any time.
�This technology will engage patients directly in their care through access to customized health education and information about their care team members,� Pytlinski says.
A health library includes both educational videos and text links to information on a wide variety of health topics. The myhealth Education module lists specific videos and information relevant to that patient�s condition, which have been ordered by the provider. There is an opportunity for the patient to indicate when the educational material has been viewed and if he or she has any questions about it. Another handy feature Patient Touch offers is access to weather and information on area lodging and restaurants.
�Patient Touch Technology is a revolutionary way for patients� needs to be met, specifically in the areas of education and information,� says Debbie Turpin, chief nurse executive at Alton Memorial Hospital. �We�re proud to provide this technology to our patients and family members. It provides them with a single source for accurate and consistent information.�
The Art of History
Alton Memorial�s history is also being brought to life through a large, four-section mural in the main corridor of the Duncan Wing. The mural will reflect what was happening in the community during the time each new wing of the hospital was built.
The Sound of Music
While the new wing is visually beautiful, it will also sound beautiful in the spacious Hutchinson Lobby. Music will greet visitors to the Duncan Wing with the addition of a self-playing baby grand piano. The piano is made possible by the generosity of friends and relatives of long-time White Cross Auxiliary board member and hospital volunteer Anna Beach. When Anna passed away in 2008, her friends and family made 119 gifts to the hospital in her memory.
�I spoke with Mom a few weeks before she passed away and said I thought the piano would be a nice thing to have for the new patient bed tower,� says Irene McLaughlin, Beach�s daughter and the volunteer coordinator at AMH. �Mom agreed. I feel like she will be continuing her acts of kindness through the music of the piano, as it will calm others in a stressful situation.�
At the Duncan Wing grand opening, Anna�s niece, Gigi Darr, will play Anna�s favorite song, �What a Wonderful World.� The piano will be dedicated in a ceremony at 3:30 p.m. March 10.
The piano will be able to play recorded music on its own, but it can also be played live. McLaughlin says she is compiling a list of volunteers who would be interested in playing the piano during the afternoon.
Donor Recognition
�When people visit the Duncan Wing, we hope they�ll take special notice of the donor wall across from the Starbuck�s coffee bar,� says Marlene Lewis, development officer at Alton Memorial. �Everyone who gave to the capital campaign will be listed, no matter the size of the gift. In addition, artwork, rooms and the lobby will have donor names associated with them. It�s exciting to be able to publicly recognize the generosity of community members.�
For more information about the ribbon cutting, call 618-463-7305.
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