October 7, 2020 – The construction of the Grove residents’ new home is approximately halfway to completion and remains on track to open its doors to 60 per cent more residents in August 2021.

“Our whole community has been a driving force behind the Grove redevelopment project from the beginning and it is incredible to see the new building take shape,” said Eric Hanna, President and CEO, Arnprior Regional Health. “This new home provides our senior community with much-needed additional local capacity to allow aging in our community and also incorporates upgraded design elements to facilitate increased levels of infection prevention and control.”

Based on lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic experience thus far, the design of the new Grove will incorporate time-sensitive upgrades to allow for improved management of future infectious disease outbreaks or pandemics. These include but are not limited to:

• Purchasing portable negative air units that can be easily installed in a resident’s room when needed (i.e. during an outbreak) without having to relocate the resident to a specialized room.
• Installing tracks and curtains in the living rooms and activity room to better accommodate physical distancing measures and smaller cohorts, when needed.
• Upgrading certain finishes (i.e. countertops and handrails) to more robust materials that will better withstand stronger cleansers and disinfectants.

“We took a proactive approach of reviewing our design plans for the new Grove to determine what updates were possible at this stage of the project to enhance our abilities to best protect residents and staff from the spread of infectious diseases,” said Eric. “Recommendations were based on best practices, input from our interprofessional team and the Ministry of Long-Term Care’s COVID-19 guidelines.”

As the Grove construction project hits the 50 per cent mark of completion, the contractor, McDonald Brothers Construction, has recently accomplished the following project milestones:

• Framed the majority of the second-floor interior walls
• Completed the roofing and verified it is watertight
• Installed all mechanical roof top units

Currently, the major focuses for the Grove construction include the exterior insulation and masonry, ongoing window installation, and the interior drywall.

“As we near the completion of the Grove residents’ new state-of-the-art home, we are grateful for the community’s continued support to achieve our Come Home to Great Care Campaign goal,” said Ben Gardiner, Executive Director, Arnprior Regional Health Foundation. “In response to the pandemic, our Foundation’s activities have had to be adjusted to find new innovative ways to fundraise within the guidelines. With that said, we are proud to continue progressing towards our goal that will allow the new Grove to welcome more residents home to excellent, compassionate care in the community they love.”

For a current view of the Grove construction, access the camera here.

About Arnprior Regional Health

Arnprior Regional Health (ARH) is a progressive 105-bed organization that includes a fully accredited community hospital, nursing home, primary health care centre and extensive community programs. ARH is a regional hub with a strong history of providing exemplary care to the residents of West Ottawa, McNab/Braeside, Arnprior and Mississippi Mills. As your partner in health, ARH is committed to listening to and responding to meet the needs of those we serve, because together, we create a healthy community.

For more information:

Melissa McDermott

[email protected]