GROSSMONT HOSPITAL COMPLETES CONSTRUCTION ON TOP 3 STORIES OF EMERGENCY & CRITICAL CARE

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September 18, 2009 (La Mesa)-- Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) and Sharp Grossmont Hospital, East County’s largest hospital, have jointly announced that construction is now completed on the top three floors of the Emergency and Critical Care Center – the first infrastructure improvement project that was financed by voter-approved bonds at the publicly owned hospital.

 

A ribbon cutting ceremony was held on Wednesday, to dedicate the recently completed $41 million build-out of three upper floors located directly above the hospital’s existing Emergency Department and Intensive Care Unit. The 75,000-square-foot expansion features 90 new patient beds, including 24 intensive care beds on one floor and 66 medical/surgical beds on two other floors. The addition brings the total bed count at the hospital to 536. Patients are scheduled to be admitted to the new floors beginning the week of Sept. 21.

 

Patients and their family members will discover that the three new floors showcase soaring windows that provide ample natural light and views of the surrounding hills, along with lounge areas and sundeck terrace patios. Private rooms are equipped with flat-screen TVs, showers, and reclining chairs or couches that convert to beds for loved ones. Rooms also are equipped with extra storage capacity and new state-of-the-art medical equipment for improved diagnosis and treatment. Some equipment is located in headwalls for easy access for nurses. The critical care and acute care beds are configured into stations, or “pods,” and arranged near various nursing stations with sleek, modern furniture along shorter, rounded hallways. To learn more about the Emergency and Critical Care Center and to take an online tour, visit www.sharp.com/grossmont.

 

“We are very grateful to taxpayers and donors for their support of their publicly owned hospital, and proud to see the completion of the Critical Care Center,” said James Stieringer, 2009 GHD board president. “We are making good on our commitment to assure that patients’ needs are met at the hospital, and that their reasonable expectations are exceeded.”

 

“This expansion is the latest step in Sharp Grossmont’s journey to transform the health care experience for the people of East San Diego County,” said Michele Tarbet, Sharp Grossmont Hospital, Senior Vice President and CEO. “This project is one of the most efficiently designed medical facilities in the country. We are proud to provide outstanding clinical care right here in East County. And, everyone at the hospital is dedicated to making the health care experience better, treating patients and their families the way they want to be treated. We at Sharp Grossmont are committed to meeting the future health care needs of the community.”

 

Sharp Healthcare manages the hospital under a 30-year lease that was executed with the District in 1991. The District serves as landlord of the hospital, including ownership of the property and buildings, on behalf of East County residents.

 

Several years ago, GHD board members realized that major capital improvements were needed at the hospital. As a result, the District sponsored a $247-million bond measure, called Proposition G, which appeared on the June 2006 ballot. Voters approved the GHD-sponsor Prop G measure by more than 77 percent, well above the two-thirds voter requirement. There was no organized opposition, and no ballot argument against Prop G filed with the Registrar of Voters.

 

The completion of the E&CCC is the first of several construction projects at the 55-year-old hospital that will be financed by Prop. G. Prop G-related construction is expected to continue until 2013. Work is continuing simultaneously on several other Prop. G-related projects, including construction of a new Diagnostic and Treatment Center and Central Energy Plant, along with the remodeling of the hospital’s East Tower.

 

Another Prop. G project will be the construction of the Dr. John W. Hardebeck Health Occupations Training Center (HOTC), which will feature classroom and lab space for the training for future generations of nurses and other healthcare professionals. The HOTC is named after a former GHD board member who passed away in April 2008.For more information about GHD, visit www.grossmonthealthcare.org.

 

Sharp Grossmont Hospital is the largest not-for-profit, full-service acute care hospital in San Diego’s East County, serving the community for more than 50 years. To learn more about Sharp Grossmont Hospital, visit www.sharp.com/grossmont or call 1-800-82-SHARP (1-800-827-4277).
 


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