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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Schweitzer gift will go toward Pullman hospital expansion

Chelsea Embree Lewiston Tribune

Ed and Beatriz Schweitzer have donated an additional $350,000 to the Pullman Regional Hospital surgical center expansion and renovation.

The founder of Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories in Pullman and his wife have now donated $700,000 to the project, according to a news release issued Monday by the Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation.

“They continue to demonstrate their philanthropy and generosity in this community,” said Rueben Mayes, chief development officer of the Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation. “The fact that they’ve chosen to improve the quality of health care in this community really makes a big statement.”

The $1.75 million project will include the construction of a fourth operating room and technological upgrades to three existing ones at the hospital. Preliminary renovations are slated to begin in June, Mayes said. All four operating rooms are expected to be up and running by March 2017.

The improvements come at a time of increased surgical demand at the hospital.

“The need for surgery … has just been rising since we opened the doors,” said Alison Weigley, the hospital foundation’s assistant director of development, external relations and marketing.

The additional operating room will mean patients won’t have to wait for surgeries, she said, noting that technological upgrades will also continue to attract quality surgeons to the region.

“Surgeons are choosing to do their surgeries at Pullman Regional Hospital,” Weigley said. “Patients are choosing to do their surgeries at Pullman Regional Hospital.”

The hospital foundation set an initial fundraising goal at $850,000 for the project and has surpassed that, Mayes said. The hospital is covering the remainder of the $1.75 million project costs.

The Pullman Regional Hospital Foundation will continue fundraising efforts throughout the year.