State-of-the-art emergency services now available 10 minutes from Norfolk

Text and Photo by Jonathan Barbagallo

The Hartford Healthcare Health Center in Winsted had its grand opening at their new facility located at 80 South Main Street, at the corner of Routes  44 and  8, on Jan. 21, 2021.

With the ribbon cutting ceremony complete, residents of the northwest corner now have a 30,000 square-foot building that will meet their medical needs for years to come.  Services on the three floors include a stand-alone emergency department that is open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., primary and specialty care offices, cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation, obstetrics –gynecology and mammography, occupational and physical therapy as well as a CT scanner and a helipad for landing the Life Star helicopter.

Most important to volunteers on the Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance is the emergency department.  According to Kevin Teeling, nurse manager of the department, “This facility is a free-standing emergency department and not a clinic.  With our CT scanner and increased radiology services, we are equipped to handle any walk-in emergency or patients that our local ambulances can bring us.”  Teeling goes on to explain that, with the increased visibility and attention brought to the new building, patient visits are higher than expected and the number of ambulances bringing patients are larger than compared to the former Winsted Health Center facility. 

Kitty Hickcox, chief of the Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance, was excited with the new emergency department opening because it allows her group of volunteers to transport Norfolk citizens to the nearest facility more reliably.  “The new building allows us to transport our patients to the closest facility possible, while knowing that they would get the same care as any other hospital.  The Route 44 location also allows our volunteers to return to Norfolk more quickly and respond to other emergencies.”  

While the new building will not be a tourist attraction for Winsted, it is comforting to know that a state-of-the-art facility is only 10 minutes away.  Teeling explains it simply, “The sooner that we can start life saving treatments, the better the outcome.” 

More information can be found at the website: https://hartfordhealthcare.org/locations-partners/health-centers/winsted