Progress at the Calgary General
Hospital – a Bank!
by Deb Lee, Heritage Committee and
CGH Commemoration Project
On May 19, 1971, a bank opened
inside the Calgary General Hospital. At the Open House, refreshments were
served, and all the ladies who attended were given a corsage. What’s the big
deal, you say?
It was big deal for the Royal Bank
of Canada: the first time a bank would be available inside a hospital. That was
not the only record to be set. The manager of this new branch was a woman named
Pat DerBach. In those days, all bank managers were men. The staff of four were
all women as well. This was a very progressive move for the Royal Bank!
The new presence of a bank was a
real advantage to the hospital staff. In those days, pay cheques (issued by the
City of Calgary) were on paper, and the envelope had to be picked up from the
Payroll Department or the hospital work site. Payday was an extra busy day, as
many staff (whether they were working that day or not) stopped by to pick up
their pay cheques. Many hundreds of staff now had a very convenient place to
deposit their cheque and do their financial business at the Royal Bank. The
bank benefitted greatly from the many new accounts that were opened, and it was
also a great convenience for patients and visitors.
The bank was not immune to other
activities… There was a robbery a few years later. The Calgary Albertan
reported on September 4, 1976, that two men entered the bank with one brandishing
a revolver. They kept the customers out, and one cash drawer was emptied. Fortunately,
no one was injured, but the thieves made off with several thousand dollars. Their
getaway vehicle was found later in the hospital parking lot. There was no
subsequent report about the robbers being caught… so perhaps they got away with
it.
To this day, there is a Royal Bank
presence in most Calgary hospitals—usually an ATM. And now you know it all
started at the Calgary General Hospital!
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