KishHealth System announces physician awards
April 29, 2010KishHealth System is moving to the next phase of the Kishwaukee Community Hospital campus development plan that sets the stage for expansion of healthcare services well into the future.
The two remaining departments in the old hospital have moved to new locations to allow demolition of the building beginning May 3.
“The first phase of campus development was building the new hospital, which opened in 2007,” said Brad Copple, Kishwaukee Community Hospital president. “Now three years later, we’re building a new cancer center and taking additional steps to lay the foundation for constructing more modern, efficient and high tech healthcare facilities. It may take many years to fully realize the potential for the property south of Bethany Road, but what we are doing today is implementing a plan to conserve both financial and environmental resources to better serve patients and our community in the future.”
In addition to taking down the old hospital, an improved Bethany Road entrance to the campus will be constructed and ready for public and employee use by November.
Underground utilities also will be installed on the property to make the land ready for future development. This work will include installation of water, sewer and electric lines, and connections to allow expansion of fiber optic communication to future buildings.
“Installing the utilities now will save development costs down the road,” Copple said.
Conservation efforts
Demolition of the old hospital will entail leveling the building, removing the parking lots, and restoring the area to green space in preparation for future development.Dirt excavated from the site for the new cancer center has been stockpiled and will be used to fill and level the area under the old hospital. Debris from the old hospital will be crushed and used as the base for the new Bethany Road entrance and road to the new cancer center from the hospital’s main entrance on Sycamore Road.
Cost considerations
“While there is a cost to this next phase of development], by moving forward we will save the organization more than $600,000 a year, which represents the operating costs of maintaining the old hospital,” Copple said.As part of the campus planning, an engineering and architectural study was completed to identify the work and costs necessary to renovate and potentially use the building for other purposes.
“The study confirmed many of the infrastructure issues that led, in part, to the health system board deciding to build the new hospital in the first place: a good portion of the ventilation and plumbing systems would have to be replaced, and a sprinkler system would need to be installed,” Copple said.
“We reached out to several community organizations looking for space. But once we all understood the multi-million dollar cost of renovating the building, we realized lease payments would be higher than the cost of renting new space in the community. This eliminated interest from would-be tenants,” he said.
“The most cost effective option and best fit for our strategic campus vision was to relocate Cardiopulmonary Rehab and Emergency Medical Services and demolish the old hospital to allow for the realization of our long-range campus plan,” Copple said.
Department moves
Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation has relocated to newly built out space on the second floor of the medical office building attached to the new hospital. This area provides the same equipment and walking track as patients had before, plus new amenities:
- Male and female locker rooms with showers; 3 public restrooms,
- More privacy for rehab patients during monitoring by staff,
- Classroom space with 62-inch flat screen TV,
- Comfortable waiting area,
- Scenic views from windows surrounding the horseshoe,
- More efficient heating and cooling controls,
- Easy access to Kish Coffee House and to the cafeteria on the garden level of the hospital, and
- Rapid access to emergency care.
The KishHealth Emergency Medical Services System, which provides training and oversight for the community’s ambulance providers, has moved to 2727 Sycamore Road, ideally located very close to the hospital Emergency Department. This building, which also houses DeKalb County Hospice and DeKalb County American Red Cross, provides space more conducive to EMS needs. The facility also has been remodeled to include two classrooms.
More to Know
The Bethany Road entrance will close May 3. Bethany Road traffic to the hospital campus will be diverted to the Health Services Drive entrance, also off Bethany. A new Bethany Road hospital entrance is expected to be completed by November in time for the opening of the new cancer center.All plaques and Wall of Fame photos hanging in the old building have been removed and are in the possession of the Kishwaukee Health Foundation.
An indoor tree from the old Cardiac Rehab Atrium donated in memory of a cardiac rehab patient has been moved to the garden level of the new hospital. Regarding other items previously donated to cardiac rehab, all donors were contacted and the items were either given back to the donor or the donor gave permission for others to take the items.
Perennials from around the old hospital are being used in a new Green Thumb Therapy program for those impacted by cancer. Patients and family members will create and tend gardens around the Kishwaukee Cancer Care Center, at 9 Health Services Drive.
