Healthcare

NorthBay Healthcare has contracted Siemens Building Technologies to implement facilities improvements at its Fairfield and Vacaville, Calif., hospitals. Through energy efficiency upgrades and retrofits, NorthBay will save energy costs and improve staff and patient comfort. Upon completion, the two hospitals combined are guaranteed to save 2,765,634 kWh of electricity annually, equating to a substantial savings over the 10-year life of the performance-based contract.

The University of South Florida (USF) opened the $33 million South Tampa Center for Advanced Healthcare on Davis Islands in late summer of 2007. The 126,000-sf, seven-story medical office building provides a single location for a wide variety of medical services, replacing several existing outpatient clinics on Davis Islands. Housing 187 faculty offices, 94 exam rooms, a diagnostic imaging center, and a patient education center, the paperless facility will feature a $15 million electronic medical record system.

Emory University's Woodruff Health Sciences Center broke ground on the $365 million Emory Clinic in Atlanta on August 27, 2007. The five-story complex will house 470,000-sf of dedicated patient care space, outpatient services, offices, medical training, and parking. The flexible and efficient facility will accommodate clinical and translational research and treatment. Construction is slated to begin in 2008. When the facility is occupied in the summer of 2012, an existing Emory clinic will undergo a $30 million renovation to accommodate biomedical research.

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Amarillo is initiating three major construction projects totaling $33 million. Ground was broken in late summer of 2007 on the 48,000-sf, $18 million Coulter Research Building for biomedical and translational research. The School of Pharmacy will undergo an $8 million, 23,000-sf expansion to house administration, academic space, two 120-seat instructional classrooms, a 26-station instructional laboratory, and a patient simulation center for teaching and assessment. Construction will begin in early 2008.

Boston-based Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is planning to invest $1 billion over the next 15 years to expand its facilities. At the Longwood Medical Area campus, over 550,000 sf of patient care space will be added, including operating rooms, clinical space, and 130 beds. A new suburban ambulatory care center will also be constructed. Estimated at between 100,000 sf and 150,000 sf, the facility will include primary and specialist care, ambulatory surgery, and radiology. 

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers is developing Proposed Standard 189.2, “Design, Construction and Operation of High-Performance Green Health Care Facilities.” Describing procedures, methods, and documentation requirements for sustainable health care facilities, the standard will be a code-intended baseline for efficiency and performance. It will apply to patient care areas and related support areas, including hospitals, nursing facilities and outpatient facilities.

The University of Rochester is constructing a $42.5 million facility for the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center. The 163,000-sf, four-story building doubles existing space for clinical and translational research and includes a three-story glass atrium. Ground was broken on the project in May of 2006 and completion is slated for spring of 2008.

Augsburg Hospital contracted Hochtief Facility Management Energy in summer of 2007 to reduce energy costs at its 24 clinics and institutes by 34 percent over the next ten years. Hochtief will perform refurbishment including HVAC, refrigeration, and steam boiler upgrades. Augsburg Hospital is guaranteed a savings of EUR 2.6 million over the next ten years, as well as a reduction of CO2 emissions by a total of 17,000 metric tons annually.

Capital Medical Center broke ground on its new Radiation Therapy Center in Olympia, Wash., in summer of 2007. Slated for completion in early 2008, the facility features Elekta Synergy, an advanced radiation treatment system with 3D imagery guidance technology. Capital Medical Center recently opened Capital Oncology, a full-service oncology and hematology clinic, as part of an effort to create a world-class cancer center in southwest Washington.

Kaiser Permanente opened its new medical center in Santa Clara, Calif. on August 7, 2007. Replacing a 40-year old campus, the 1.26 million-sf project is the largest in Kaiser’s history and accommodates inpatient and outpatient care. Featuring private patient rooms, the 327-bed hospital features a 26-bed neonatal ICU, an eight-bed pediatric ICU, 12 labor and delivery rooms, and 28 postpartum rooms. The emergency department houses a 14-bed Clinical Decision Unit, 26 emergency treatment rooms, and six minor injury rooms.

University Hospitals Case Medical Center (UHCMC) broke ground on a new Cancer Hospital and Center for Emergency Medicine in Cleveland in August of 2007. Slated for completion in 2010, the free-standing facility will consolidate UHCMC’s cancer services (including diagnosis, treatment, surgery, oncology care, and radiation therapy) in a single location. The Center for Emergency Medicine, slated for completion in 2009, will double UHCMC’s current emergency facilities and will accommodate over 80,000 patient visit per year.

The University of Kansas Hospital opened the new Cancer Center and Medical Pavilion in Westwood, Kan., in early August of 2007. The 55,000-sf outpatient facility includes private treatment bays, radiology, laboratories, pharmacy, a blood and bone marrow transplant center, patient resource center, urgent care facility, and clinical trial areas.

The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC) was awarded $14.7 million from the Canadian federal government in summer of 2007 to fund creation of the Molecular Medicine Research Centre. Supporting cancer, cardiac, and neurology research programs, the $44.1 million center will be created in partnership with Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and private partners including Philips Medical Systems.

Boston University’s School of Dental Medicine will open a dental training institute at Dubai Healthcare City in the United Arab Emirates. Focusing on research, education, and treatment, the institute will provide specialty training in areas such as oral and maxillofacial surgery, orthodontics, and periodontics. Boston University’s center will open to its first students in summer of 2008. Dubai Healthcare City is also partnering with institutions such as the Mayo Clinic and pharmaceutical maker AstraZeneca.

Menorah Medical Center, part of HCA Midwest, will break ground in late summer of 2007 on a $14.5 million medical office building. The three-story facility will be the second medical office building on Menorah’s Overland Park, Kansas, campus. Slated for occupancy in August of 2008, the 60,000-square-foot building will provide offices for 30 to 50 physicians. Menorah may add a third medical office building, a new inpatient building with up to 60 beds, and an additional outpatient building in the future.