History

Norfolk General Hospital officially opened May 20, 1925 as a 23-bed fully equipped facility. More than 2,000 citizens attended the ceremony, a sign of the incredible community support the hospital has received since its inception.

Improvements to NGH began almost immediately after its opening. Shortly after opening, an elevator and the Rotary Sunroom were added, the hospital’s first X-ray equipment was installed in 1926 and the McCall Nurses Home was completed in 1927.

Simcoe and Norfolk County have grown rapidly since the hospital opened, and to meet the community’s needs, NGH has expanded both its size and in the scope of the services offered. In 1938 the Kinsmen Wing opened and shortly after World War II, the hospital expanded again, to 66 beds, but it still was not enough to meet the needs of the growing community. An Expansion Fund Drive began in 1950, and construction on an extensive renovation and expansion began two years later.

In October of 1954 the newly expanded Norfolk General Hospital opened as a 100-bed facility that included a new elevator, kitchen, additional OR and ED, new lab, X-ray room, nursery and more to meet the needs of the community.

But by 1960, the Hospital Board of Governors recognized the need for another expansion, not just of the size of the hospital, but in the services the community required. In 1967 the hospital now included 215 beds and was equipped with state-of-the-art medical equipment.

Recognizing the need to better serve elderly residents of the community, construction of the Norfolk Hospital Nursing Home began in 1973, making it one of the first institutions of its kind in Ontario.

Since then, NGH has focussed more of its attention to improving the way it delivers care, including the addition of a number of new services to better serve the needs of the community. The 1983 “Thanks a Million” campaign helped fund a state-of-the-art 8-bed ICU and 8-bed Step-Down Unit opened in 1984. Other major additions and improvements include:

• 2005 – Emergency Room Expansion & Redevelopment
• 2006 – CT Scanner Installed
• 2007 –  Intensive Care Unit Redevelopment
• 2009 – Digital Mammography/ PAC-MED
• 2012 –  Electronic health records from NGH and several surrounding hospitals were amalgamated
• 2014 – Portable “Giraffe” X-Ray
• 2015 – Automated Drug Dispensing Cabinets
• 2016 – Telemetry Units
• 2020 – New 128 slice CT Service

As proud as we are of our past, we are even more excited for our future. We look forward to continuing to provide the people of Simcoe and Norfolk County with the best care possible, and we thank you for almost a century of support!