Franciscan St. Margaret Health-Dyer Expanding Capabilities to Better Serve Community Growth, Meet Patient Volumes

St-Margaret-ED-RenovationDuring the next year, Franciscan St. Margaret Health-Dyer will undergo a multimillion-dollar renovation project that will expand the capabilities of its emergency, surgical and laboratory departments to meet growing community needs.

The goal of the project is to expand a comprehensive emergency center of excellence. We will remodel and expand the current surgical space, remodel and improve the surgical preadmission space and expand and improve the central sterile processing department for surgery, as well as improve the main corridor and flow to the Emergency Department on the main level,” John Mentgen, hospital executive vice president and chief operating officer said, adding, “The new design will be targeted at meeting the ever-growing population in south Lake County and to help achieve our continual growth in the emergency services and surgical services areas.”

The project, which began in late October and is scheduled to be completed at the end of 2014, includes, for the Emergency Department:

  • A 3,500-square-foot addition.
  • Renovating existing space and optimizing patient care areas.
  • Designing new, specialized patient exam rooms.
  • Adding a five-bed observation unit.
  • Creating results-waiting triage space to make visits quicker.
  • A new state-of-the-art trauma room that will double the size of the current facility.
  • Addition of a private, behavioral health suite.
  • A new isolation room for infectious patients.

 

Current operations will not be affected while the work is taking place, Dan Ratko, hospital project manager of construction, said.

The project will be done in phases – everything will remain open while it is being completed,” he said, adding the result will optimize capabilities and offer patients the best possible care.

The department also will receive new monitors and an improved nurses’ station that will provide visibility of all exam rooms. A new nurse call and tracking system and staff assistance tags will help patients better communicate with caregivers, Ratko said.

Laboratory department improvements will optimize efficiencies to make processes faster.

Surgery department improvements will include a new, 760-square-foot advanced surgical suite, new preadmission testing space, expanding the sterilization process for surgical instruments and physician locker room upgrades, Marla Hoyer-Lareau, hospital chief nursing officer and vice president of patient services, said.

The renovations are targeted to improve the patient’s experience and clinical outcomes,” she added.