Gardner PLUS was the key consultant from inception to implementation of this master planning effort that resulted in $31 million of new construction and renovation. Our firm provided all services from master planning through CON approval and schematic design through construction administration, including preparation of bid documents.
Updating the Emergency Department required the relocation of the Department of Medicine along with several ORs, all of which were in the way of the ED's expansion zone. Construction was phased to allow Surgery and the Department of Medicine elements to reconfigure the access drives and parking area, improving circulation for the Hospital's visitors and staff.
Four ortho-sized ORs were attached to the existing Surgical core. An outer racetrack sub-sterile corridor provides patient access. Support services are centralized. The design team orchestrated the inclusion of high tech equipment in junction with numerous suppliers.
The Department of Medicine relocation allowed disparate elements of the teaching program to be consolidated and housed in space tailored to their needs. Components include the mail Medical Library for the health system, flexible Conference Rooms for large or small groups, an On-Call Suite for residents, shared work areas and an array of offices for Department of Medicine staff and faculty.
The ED is built for current and projected future needs with thirty treatment rooms nearly identical for flexible use. It is designed around three staffing teams. A Decontamination Entry and Isolation Suite is designed to handle bioterrorism incidents. A series of four rooms meet sensitive GYN needs. Orthopedic cases can be handled in any room but are well managed in two rooms close to Radiology and supplies. Psych needs can be met in two secure rooms; trauma cases can be handled in four rooms, one of which is beside the Decontamination Entry and can be an Isolation Room. The ED is adjacent to a 28-bed Special Care Unit where patients can be observed for 23 hrs. The Unit occupies the former ED which was renovated after the new ED was occupied. The SCU is a unique element that allows for the care and observation of several patient types: 23 hr. observation, admits waiting for a bed, discharges waiting for release and recovery patients from the nearby Cath Lab and Specials Room.
Portions of the Radiology Department were also upgraded as part of the project – a dedicated Rad Room was constructed for the ED along with a CT scanner, both of which improve ED patient through-put. An R&F Room was relocated so that a Cath Lab could be better positioned proximate to its recovery space - the SCU.
