A ground breaking ceremony has been held for the new Regional Hospice of Western Connecticut facility in Danbury.  At the event last week, officials said the state of the art building would be the first of it's kind in the state with private patient suites for inpatient care.  Board member David Scribner says the 36,000 square foot building will be licensed as a specialty hospital and will include 12 private patient suites.

(L-R: Paul Sirois, Kevin Kelleher, Cynthia E. Roy, DPH Commissioner Dr. Jewel Mullen, Attorney General George Jepsen, Former Governor M. Jodi Rell, Francis  J. Collins and Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton.)

He says the General Assembly re-wrote hospice regulations for the state so care in Connecticut could evolve.

$1.2 million in bond funding was recently approved for completion of 10-percent of the facility , which will house the Healing Hearts portion.  Scribner says Healing Hearts is the only program of its kind that provides free bereavement services to families that have lost loved ones.  He adds that the program's annual budget is funded entirely through private donations. 

The facility is slated to open next November.