Renovation of 60-Year-Old ER at Hale County Hospital Hits Delay

West Alabama Democrat Congresswoman Terri Sewell presented a $1 million check to Hale County Hospital in July of 2024 to help the medical facility in Greensboro renovate and expand its aging emergency room, which has not been updated since the hospital was built in 1963. Now the hospital has announced that there is a temporary delay in the project.

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Work was to have begun sometime between late August and late October 2024. However, ground was not broken until March of this year. Now, construction has encountered another delay with the unexpected retirement of the project's architect.

Tiffany Cannon, the hospital's Director of Marketing and Development, wants residents to know this is only a delay.

“It is still happening," she emphasized.

The retirement means the next order of business is to find and hire a replacement architect, then bring them up to speed on the project.

Once construction actually begins, it is projected to take two years to complete work on the 6,000 sq. ft. structure that will be attached to the existing hospital. At that point, the old 1963 ER will be renovated for outpatient services.

"We have a long way to go, but we are so excited to receive this funding so we can improve our care in a safer, nicer environment for our patients," hospital CEO Shay Cherry said in 2024. "Our patients are very important to us here at Hale County Hospital, and we hope to be here for a very long time, giving great customer service."

The new ER is expected to help Hale County Hospital remain competitive at a time when many rural hospitals are closing due to financial strain.