“It’s awesome. The architecture is really cool,” said Weston Delzer, who along with Halle Kadrmas took the tour to specifically view the birthing suite. The expectant parents were impressed by the size of the rooms and the windows that bring in natural light. 

Kadrmas said she was impressed by the quality and the thought that went into everything – down to a pullout bed for the father.

Another visitor, Willie Ressler, took note after walking through some of the hospital’s public areas of how much space exists.

“It’s nice – homey,” he said.

The Minot Air Force Base Honor Guard presents the colors during the National Anthem at the start of the program in front of the new Trinity Hospital building Saturday. At the podium is Dr. Jeffrey Verhey, chairman of the Trinity Health Foundation Board.

The open house followed a program and ribbon-cutting ceremony under the outdoor canopy of the hospital entrance on a windy, cool morning.

Dr. Jeffrey Sather, former Trinity chief of staff, acknowledged the 100-year-old history of the current downtown hospital, where he and other long-time staff have spent much of their careers.

“There’ll be some tears from a few of us,” he said. “I’ve seen so many great people come and go. There’s so many stories. There’s been tears. There’s been joys. There’s been miracles in that building. But the first day here will take away the tears. This building, I can assure you, is unsurpassable in design and technology by any other hospital in the state, any other hospital in the country and any other hospital probably in the world.

“This is a great building, but it’s only a tool. This tool will allow our talented staff – and the attraction of other talented staff – to grow and provide what we need in our community that we love,” he said.

“When you look back historically about the seminal events for Minot, North Dakota, this, today, is one of them,” said state Senate Majority Leader David Hogue, R-Minot. “We all know how important health care is to a healthy community and a vibrant community. But what we might not appreciate is when you build a state-of-the-art facility like this and you staff it with high-class professionals, you will improve the economic lot of this community as well. One-sixth of the nation’s GDP is built around health care. In western North Dakota, we hear about agriculture. We hear about oil and gas industries. But right behind them is healthcare. And this facility is going to set up Minot and western North Dakota to be a leading economic powerhouse for the next 100 years.”

A crowd pours into the atrium of the new Trinity Hospital to tour portions of the facility following a program Saturday morning.

Mayor Tom Ross said among words he heard during a previous tour of the building were technology, state of the art, unique, efficient, thoughtful, patients needs and life-saving.

“But one word that did stand out to me, from start to finish, was the word dignity. Patient dignity was in the forefront of the design of this campus,” he said.

Dr. Scott Knutson, chief of staff at Trinity, noted how the design elements lead to better healthcare through the ability to triage and manage large volumes of patients, to access advanced imaging within feet of the trauma area and to have surgical equipment and supplies within easy access of surgery suites.

“These things may not be apparent to the public, but they’re critical to your care,” Knutson said. “In this space, we will continue to deliver state-of-the-art healthcare in an environment that is calm, peaceful and healing. Families will have more of the support space and services they need. There are too many design elements to list, but the architects and our staff have spent years working out the details of each department. You will immediately appreciate the light, the colors, the flooring, the layout. It’s an impressive building.”

Trinity President/CEO John Kutch recalled breaking ground in 2018 and continuing to build through a viral pandemic because of the commitment to patients to provide them with a new hospital.

“I’m anxious to welcome patients to this healthcare campus and medical district. It is so much more than just bricks and mortar. This is the destination for outstanding care, healing and hope,” he said.

Others who spoke included Alfred Sams, representing rural healthcare executives; Jody Link on behalf of U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer; and Lt. Col. James Renda, commander of the 5th Healthcare Operations Squadron at Minot Air Force Base. Afterward, the crowd had an opportunity to enjoy refreshments while getting a look around inside the building.

As a former Trinity employee, Blenda Dahlien came through her walk-through with an appreciation for features such as wheelchair closets fully stocked and an excitement over the newness of everything.

“It’s really hard to put into words all the assets that it will bring,” she said of the new hospital. “This is so grand. If you want to sum it up in one word, it’s grand.”