Jessie Jasper, Lab Technician, Mary Curtis, Manager of Cardiopulmonary, Britney Summerfield, Radiology Manager and Alyssa Madden, Patient Access Representative, are pictured at the new admitting desk at the Clearwater Valley Hospital Outpatient Services area. Renovations at CVH will help increase patient privacy and will touch each of these departments.

“The renovations we are making today check many items off of my 20 year wish list,” says Chris Steiner, Maintenance Manager, CVHC. “We have had no major renovations to our in-patient floor since the hospital was built in 1956. This has created a number of unique challenges in terms of space for patients, HVAC issues, ADA compliance, noise control, etc.”
“Several changes are being made in the first phase of our remodel including updated inpatient rooms, a remodeled and more functional nursery, new inpatient shower, remodeled locations for respiratory therapy, stress echo, ultrasound, cardiac rehabilitation and lab services which will help us to provide more personalized, private care to our patients,” says Lenne Bonner, CEO, CVHC.
Steiner reports that the renovations will add bathrooms to inpatient rooms so that “4 patients will no longer have to share one bathroom. This will obviously help with infection control and provides our patients more privacy as well.”
“We understand that being hospitalized for any medical reason means that patient has to be away from home and away from their family,” continues Bonner. “Our goal with the improvements being made is to make that experience as comfortable as possible.”
In addition to the added bathrooms, an update to the HVAC system will occur that will help with noise control, provide all inpatient rooms with negative air pressure (a necessary feature to prevent spread of all infections, including COVID-19) and each room will have its own climate control.
The current nursery will be turned into a private inpatient room with toilet/sink to add an extra inpatient bed. A second shower will be added that is walk-in and ADA compliant, “an upgrade that has been needed for many years. This project will create 8 private in-patient rooms with private toilets and sinks and 4 semi-private or, rather, dual occupancy rooms that can be used if/when needed,” says Steiner.
“We anticipate being moved into and using the updated spaces in Phase I by June 1st,” says Steiner. “Once Phase I is completed, we will rearrange some things and immediately move into Phase II, which will be the upgraded Endoscopy Suite.”
“We are so grateful to all of our staff and all of the patients who have endured these renovations with us,” says Bonner. “We know that it’s not easy to maintain doing your jobs in a constant construction zone and that the noise has made it difficult for patients to rest. We do feel, in the long run, the upgrades will be worth it and will help us to provide better care for our patients.”
“Even walking through the hallways with the noise and the mess that comes from any construction project, you still see employees with smiles on their faces, doing the best they possibly can to take care of our patients. We have some very dedicated and capable people working here and times like this really highlight those people,” says Steiner. “I’d like to give a huge shout out to all the employees who have persevered during this time and a big thank you to all the patients who have stayed with us during the noise and commotion. It will be worth it!”