Rod Gantefoer was at a Rotary lunch to speak about the Melfort heliport project. (Mat Barrett/northeastNOW Staff)

By Mat Barrett

Melfort Heliport

Gantefoer speaks to Melfort Rotary Club advocating for heliport at hospital

Nov 19, 2019 | 5:00 PM

The Rotary Club of Melfort got to hear from former Melfort Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Rod Gantefoer on Tuesday, Nov. 19.

Gantefoer spoke on behalf of the Municipal Health Advisory Committee that the City of Melfort put together to work with the North Central Health Care Foundation to help improve healthcare in the area. The speech on this day was directed towards the heliport at the Melfort Hospital. The project is in conjunction with STARS Air Ambulance, something the Gantefoer was a major part of bringing it to Saskatchewan. He said having a helipad in Melfort is key in helping reduce response times.

“Instead of landing out at the airport, you land right at the hospital,” Gantefoer told northeastNOW. “It shaves time. You’re now 30, 35 minutes away when the helicopter leaves the helipad in Melfort, until it gets to the helipad in Saskatoon.”

He added bringing the helipad to Melfort is another step for healthcare in the northeast. Gantefoer called it “completing the chain” for him with his history bringing STARS to Saskatchewan.

The helipad in Melfort is expected to cost about $600,000 and there have already been numerous donations, some have been collected, some are just pledges and commitments right now. However, Gantefoer said not all the donations have to be monetary.

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“You’ve got to get rid of some trees, and you’ve got to build up the level three or four feet to get it up to the height of the hospital,” he said. “So maybe we can get local contractors.”

Some fencing also needs to be accounted for, as well as concrete and rebar among many others.

Gantefoer also touched on the fact that they aren’t just fundraising for the heliport. He also talked about the need for a CT Scanner in Melfort and the fight that continues to bring it to the northeast. Some other equipment that is needed in Melfort are a bone densitometry machine, a mammogram machine, a yag laser and more.

“We want to just make dynamic health care services here in the northeast,” Gantefoer said. “Not just for Melfort, but for the whole corner.”

Editor’s note: this story has been amended to include the correct spelling of Mr Gantefoer’s name.

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mat.barrett@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @matbarrett6