Elizabeth Bietsch, August 8, 1956.--PHOTO COURTESY Esplanade Archives
Late in November 1957, ribbon-cutting ceremonies were held for the new Medicine Hat General Hospital and the building just north of the hospital known only as the “nurses’ residence.” The modern structures replaced the old hospital and the Victoria Nurses’ Home once located where the Police Station now stands.
Alberta architects Rule, Wynn, and Rule designed both the new hospital and the new nurses’ residence, with Peter Rule in charge of the Medicine Hat project. The architectural firm is recognized today for bringing modern architecture to Alberta. The nurses’ residence is a fine example of Ranch Architecture. This mid-century bi-level is built in a double T formation with a long, understated curve which is only visible from air. The primary contractor for the hospital was Foundation Co. of Canada. The contractor for the nurses’ residence was Oland Construction Limited (Lethbridge), headed by Jack Oland.
Moving day to transfer the patients from the old hospital to the new, came on January 22, 1958. On the same day, the student nurses relocated to their new building. This new building not only served as a dorm, with 105 rooms, but it also housed the Medicine Hat General Hospital School of Nursing. All classes were held in this building. Included in the instructional areas were a classroom with tiered seating, a laboratory, and a library. Practical training took place in the hospital wards with an adjoining tunnel providing easy access.
No one could have been more excited about moving into the new nurses’ home than the Director of Nursing, Elizabeth Bietsch, who received a permanent residence in the new building. Elizabeth came to Medicine Hat in 1953 from Edmonton, where she taught for the Red Cross and St. John’s Ambulance and volunteered with what is today known as the Alberta Disaster Service Agency. The latter may have helped her during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis when the tunnel was filled with emergency beds in case of a nuclear catastrophe.
Elizabeth had spent her early childhood in the area. Her father, Reverend Heinrich Bietsch was the Lutheran pastor in the Walsh, Cypress Hills and Graburn communities from 1918-1923 followed by a three-year ministry in the Burstall, Oyen and Fox Valley area.
In 1971, the Medicine Hat General Hospital School of Nursing closed. Larger educational institutions had become the trend. Consequently, a nursing program was implemented at the Medicine Hat College. The old residence building, with the help of Elizabeth Bietsch was converted to what is today, the Regional Resource Centre.
Soon after the successful completion of the local hospital, Rule, Wynn, and Rule designed the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton (1958) and McMahon Stadium in Calgary (1960). The Oland brothers who had earlier built Medicine Hat High School and Crescent Heights High School, added two more city schools in 1961. For her lifelong dedication to public service and local charities, Elizabeth Bietsch was named Citizen of the Year 1976.
Sally Sehn is a past Member of the Heritage Resources Committee, City of Medicine Hat
