After navigating the pandemic in a cramped, dated facility ill-equipped for mass vaccinations and testing, Kingfisher County Health Department moved into its newly renovated location last week.

The former Kingfisher Regional Hospital physical therapy building at 421 W. Bowman Ave. is now the sleek new home of the health department, which provides health education, social services, wellness care and family planning, as well as disease and injury prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

If all goes as planned, a “soft opening” is scheduled Monday when clients will be welcome at the new building, with a grand opening to be scheduled at a later date.

The 5,000-square-foot building now contains a bright, spacious lobby and reception station; a lab for vaccinations, blood draws and other specimen collection; multiple fully-equipped exam rooms; an isolation room with a separate outside entrance for infectious cases; administrative offices, conference room and more.

A covered drive-through will protect personnel from the weather when the need arises to collect testing specimens for patients waiting in their cars.

(During the height of the pandemic, health department personnel often spent full days walking in and out to vehicles parked in the busy parking lot shared with the courthouse to collect nasal specimens.)

The cost of the remodel was about $700,000, but was paid in large measure by money the county health department has been setting aside for that purpose for more than 15 years, Heath Dobrovolny, chairman of the county board of commissioners, said.

Still to be completed at the site is a separate climate-controlled storage building and installation of an electrical generator, at a total additional cost of around $100,000 which will be paid through federal ARPA funds, he said.

“The remodel has gone very well and the board is pleased with the outcome of the project,” Dobrovolny said. “This new site will serve the county well for years to come.”

“We’re so grateful for the support that we’ve received from the county commissioners and from our local board of health for this project,” Jennifer Boyle, administrative programs officer said.

“This feels like such a gift of support after all our employees went through during the pandemic,” Maggie Jackson, District 2 administrative director, said.

Board of health members include Max Thomas, Ann Finley, Dr. Drew Hendrix, Steve Shiever and Jeremy Eaton.

Health department employees worked all last week to move to the new building, with a mobile staff left at the original site to provide services during the transition.

In addition to Boyle, local employees housed at the health department include Andrea Cooper, coordinating nurse; Jalyn Bannister, patient care assistant; Blair Coughlan, health educator; Heather Dunavin, administrative assistant; Leticia Barcenas, brestfeeding peer consultant; Robin Pile, Children’s First nurse; Lorana Najera and Katelynn Braswell, community healthcare workers; Whitney Mathes and Kaci Hall, administrative techs, and Gena Stephens, registered nurse.