University Hospital plans expansion
Company's focus is on Evans campus
The president and CEO of University Hospital shared his company's vision for the future - including an expansion in Columbia County - at a Republican Party breakfast Jan. 20.
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Larry Reid, who heads the regional healthcare provider, said the 188-year-old company is moving forward with expansion plans for its Evans campus and a $93.5 million renovation and expansion downtown.
Plans at the downtown campus call for a four-story cardiovascular tower, 72 advanced patient rooms, an outpatient center and a redesigned and enlarged surgical suite.
In November, University broke ground on a $13 million, 60,000-square-foot medical office building and parking deck structure. Called Medical Office Building 4, the three-story building will house 30 to 35 specialized physicians and a $5 million to $6 million diagnostic imaging center.
"This is our 188th year, and it will be one of our most exciting," he said.
The downtown outpatient center will be completed this summer, with the cardiovascular tower, patient rooms and surgery suite following in 2009. The new Evans imaging center and outpatient building, which will be completed at year's end, will provide more convenient outpatient treatment for Columbia County residents, he said.
The goal, he said, is to make the Evans campus an "outpatient destination," and the frequency of services such as outpatient surgeries will increase in Evans this year.
Reid said a hospital is his company's ultimate goal for its Evans campus, but state issues such as a certificate of need, which is required before one can be built, must be resolved. A certificate of need is a state license required to add hospital beds and medical equipment to a state-determined hospital service area.