Hospital announces $24M expansion

COLDWATER - To "build on a promise," Mercer Health is embarking on a $24 million hospital expansion project.

The project will add a 54,000-square-foot, three-floor west wing to the existing Coldwater hospital. The expansion represents more than 40 percent of the size of the existing hospital, which is 119,000 square feet. The first floor will be designated for an outpatient center, the second for a surgery suite and the third for private inpatient rooms.

The project is in response to increased demand in those three areas, Mercer Health officials said.

"That's what it's all about. We really want to try to provide the talents of the physicians and clinical staff, so people can stay in the community," chief financial officer George Boyles said on Sunday at the MED Foundation Dinner in Celina. "There are some things we can't do. We can't perform open-heart surgery in the hospital but we can do a lot of other things, like keeping a family together so they don't have to travel between here and Columbus or Dayton."

Patient satisfaction was another factor in the decision to expand, officials said. Through daily surveys, patients indicated they would like more privacy in the same-day surgery area. The current space mainly separates patients with curtains, and respondents preferred private inpatient rooms, which Mindy Kremer, development, marketing and community relations senior director called "the gold standard in new hospital construction."

The project has been in the works for two years, CEO Lisa Klenke said. She thanked Tom Sanderell, who donated $1 million last year, for his generosity. His donation provided the "seed money" for the expansion project.

Funding will come from three areas, Boyles said.

"What we will do is, we have some internal cash reserves that we will utilize for part of it. We anticipate that we will have to borrow some money from a lending institution, and the third vehicle is we will have a capital expansion campaign within the community," Boyles said.

The project preserves the vision the health system's founders had in 1942 to provide local access to health care, Kremer said.

"We are building on a promise made nearly 70 years ago by the forefathers of this organization, to provide quality, local health care," Kremer said. "We are so honored that the community has enthusiastically supported us through the years and we welcome the continued support as we continue to meet the healthcare needs of our community."

In the past two years, the number of surgical procedures has grown by nearly 25 percent, she said.

"Currently, the surgery department is located in the original 1950 building," she said. "The expansion will meet the needs of the surgical volume growth by providing adequate space and improved functioning."

A shift in healthcare trends created the need for extra space for outpatient procedures as well, she said.

"Outpatient services equate for nearly 75 percent of all services provided at the hospital, a major shift from the traditional care model," she said. "Currently, many of the outpatient services are decentralized, including injections and infusions, chemotherapy, pain management and central line and implanted port care. The expansion will meet the needs of outpatient growth while allowing for increased accessibility for patients and visitors," Kremer explained

The greater number of private rooms not only meets patient preferences but also improves treatment options, Kremer said.

"In addition to privacy, private rooms allow for better infection control and can reduce noise disturbances thereby improving patient sleep," she said.

Officials hope to break ground in 9-12 months. Construction is expected to take 12-15 months with a tentative opening date of April 2018.

"It's an aggressive time frame but we think with the right construction manager and architect we can get it done," Boyles said.

The health system will accept bids for an architect to plan the facility and a construction manager, who will hire the different entities needed to complete the project.

Construction is not likely to cause major service disruptions, Boyles said. Once the expansion is complete, the existing surgery and outpatient spaces will likely be renovated.

"We'll go back and renovate that area and that'll be used for other hospital uses, whether it be clinical functions or administrative offices for support services," he said.

Officials will seek input from a variety of sources as the project progresses, Boyles said.

"We have a lot of people that have worked hard to get us to the place we are today but there is still a lot of internal work that we need to discuss," he said. "We'll solicit input from our employees and physicians and look to our boards and the community to help us come up with a plan that everybody will be happy with."