BRISTOW, Okla. — For over a year now, the Bristow hospital has been closed, something we've been covering from the beginning, but that will be changing soon.
It closed on the first of the year in 2022 when there was a change in operations. The previous operators owned the license to the hospital leaving the new operators, Carrus Health, to get a new one.
The problem is the building needs upgrades. Now, after seven months of work, the hospital is almost ready to open back up.
The hospital is now known as the Carrus Lakeside Hospital and dozens of community members visited the building Friday to check out what it is like now.
“This is just absolutely amazing,” said Ron Biddle.
Biddle lives in Bristow and works as a local pastor there. 2 News Oklahoma spoke to him inside a patient room where he once was treated years ago. He says the changes are stunning.
“The room was dirty," Biddle said. "There was dirt all over the floor. There was cracks in the walls up above. It was pretty nasty."
Now that’s all changed.
“It’s neat to be able to come in here today and just see how much progress there has been,” said Mark Evans, another Bristow resident.
The once-red brick building is now painted a bright white color making residents feel more welcomed.
“This would have been a whole different experience than what I had,” Biddle said.
“It's much brighter so there’s a different sense when you walk in the door of just a little bit of more comfort,” said DJ Carney who lives in the town.
However, the changes are much deeper than a coat of paint. Patients will notice a bigger lobby, bathrooms in every patient room, and a larger emergency room to name a few of the improvements.
Work on phase one is almost complete and that means the hospital is almost ready to open that area.
“The emergency department, four inpatient beds and all of the hospitals outpatient services like laboratory radiology,” Jon Rains, Carrus Health President, said.
Next, the company will move on to phase two which includes fixing up another 21 patient beds. Once opened, Biddle feels it will help with the quality of health care for the community.
“If you’re in a good condition, if you’re in a good place, things become more restful more peaceful,” Biddle said.
Carrus Health tells me that they hope to have the building open in the next 60 days.
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