Grand Opening of Cancer Center set for Sept. 9
STERLING, Colo. (Aug. 23, 2010) – Years in the making and made possible by generous community support and donations, construction is nearing completion on the $8.8 million David Walsh Cancer Center.
An official grand-opening is scheduled for Sept. 9 at the facility located on the Sterling Regional MedCenter campus.
The 8,600-square-foot cancer center will offer radiation oncology, chemotherapy and infusion services, tumor registry, a physicians’ clinic and a patient education center. Radiation oncology services at the center will be a satellite location to the radiation oncology program at the Cancer Institute at North Colorado Medical Center, a sister Banner Health hospital in Greeley.
The David Walsh Cancer Center will meet an acute need in the northeastern Colorado plains where the nearest cancer care provider can be as far as 120 miles away in Denver.
The grand opening celebration is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 9 at 9 a.m. Speakers include:
- Michelle Joy, CEO Sterling Regional MedCenter
- Peter Fine, president and CEO Banner Health
- Sean Swarner, first cancer survivor to climb the 7-Summits.
The celebration will conclude with tours of the facility.
The center was made possible by Sterling residents Frank and Gloria Walsh. In 2008, the Walshes announced they would donate $8.8 million to Sterling Regional MedCenter and the Banner Health Foundation to build the facility. The donation from the Walsh family is a memorial for their son, David, who died in 1998 after a battle with metastatic esophageal cancer.
Opening a cancer center of this stature in a rural community like Sterling is remarkable and nearly unheard of. “This cancer center is a long-time dream for everyone in this community,” said Michelle Joy, CEO of Sterling Regional MedCenter. “In early September, when we open the doors and begin treating patients, that dream comes true.
The David Walsh Cancer Center will truly enhance the level of oncology services provided in northeastern Colorado and help us achieve our mission of making a difference in people’s lives through excellent patient care. It is this type of facility that will allow us to achieve that goal.”
The David Walsh Cancer Center includes state-of-the-art technology and will offer treatment in a facility specifically designed for cancer care. Design and lighting features are subtle, delicate and inviting. An open, airy and comfortable interior allows patients and their families to receive care in an atmosphere as gentle and supportive as possible. The use of art, sculpture and muted paint tones also soften the patient experience. The center should begin seeing patients by the middle of September. The David Walsh Cancer Center was designed by Boulder Associates Architects and built by Hensel Phelps Construction Co.
About Sterling Regional MedCenter
Sterling Regional MedCenter has served the health care needs of Northeastern Colorado and the surrounding area since 1938. Sterling Regional is a 36-bed acute care hospital with state-of-the-art technology providing a full range of health care services. Sterling Regional is part of Banner Health, a nonprofit health care system based in Phoenix, Ariz., with 23 hospitals throughout the West. Banner Health was recently named one of the Top Ten Healthcare Systems in the U.S. by Thomson Reuters.
MEDIA CONTACTS
Sterling Regional MedCenter
Kayedeane Samber, e-mail
(970) 521-5396
The Lavidge Company
Greg Sexton, gsexton@lavdige.com
(480) 998-2600
