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Living Well: New medical office building at MRH to enhance care

When you’re sick, the last thing you want to do is go from one place to the next to receive care, and some patients of Memorial Regional Health have to do just that. But, with the planned, new medical office building, all services will be in one place to provide not only more convenience, but higher-quality care.

Let’s say you are an orthopaedic patient. Currently, you would visit your orthopaedic surgeon at the MRH Medical Clinic, go to the hospital for an MRI, then drive downtown for your rehab services. With the planned medical office building, or MOB, you will be able to do all these things in one stop, saving time and frustration.

In addition, your orthopaedic doctor will be able to easily walk down the hall to speak with your physical therapist to make decisions together on your care. Having all your providers in one place means you will receive better coordinated care, and more effective care.

“The new medical office building will be so much more than a place where patients come to see their provider. Instead, it will be a healing place with caregivers coming together in collaboration from multiple medical specialties to provide comprehensive care to patients,” said Dr. Kristie Yarmer, MRH pediatrician.

Planned enhancements

The new medical office building will include 22 services, including new cardiac rehabilitation services and a pharmacy.

In addition:

  • The rehab center will be housed on the first floor of the medical office building for easy access, with state-of-the-art equipment.
  • A new cardiac rehab center will be close to the cardiology clinic, where the cardiologist will be close at hand.
  • The new infusion center will be a more comfortable and inviting space, a place that encourages and accommodates family members or friends to sit with their loved ones.

“Having all of these services housed in one facility will greatly improve the experience for the patient and improve quality of care,” Yarmer said.

Improved infusion services

Before creating the design for the new infusion center, Marie Kettle, RN, primary infusion nurse, turned to her patients for ideas about how to make it not only functional, but also a pleasant place for patients, many of whom spend several hours per week in infusion.

One patient, Benna Haughey, was happy to provide input to pass on to the architects who were incorporated into the final design. Benna had been going to Steamboat for care, but decided to come to MRH, as she was tired of the long drive. She said she enjoys her time with Kettle and other nurses at MRH, but finds the small room a bit lonely and cramped. That’s why Haughey suggested a new infusion center with a living-room feel and lots of windows. Time passes more quickly when you have pleasant surroundings and someone with who to share the time.

“It makes it easier to accept the treatment, especially when we can focus on something besides ourselves. I look forward to MRH’s new infusion center and the company and comfort that it will bring,” Benna said.

The decision to build

The current clinic building was built in 1949, and the cost to make repairs, bring it up to code, reconfigure for current technologies and add efficiencies exceeds the cost of building something new. The board of trustees went through an extensive Master Site Planning process that involved all the buildings and properties owned and operated by MRH. After review of the current medical clinic, it became crystal clear that it had reached the end of its life. The board decided that constructing a new three-story medical office building adjacent to the hospital was the best solution.

The project will likely be funded through a low-interest USDA loan, as well as capital campaign donations via the Memorial Regional Health Foundation. There will not be a request for special tax dollars for the project.

Learn more, get involved

If you’d like to learn more about the new medical office building, contact Jennifer Riley, vice president of operations, at 970-826-3109 or jennifer.riley@tmhcraig.org. If you’d like to give to the foundation’s efforts to support the project, contact Eva E. Peroulis, MRH Foundation director, at 970-826-2424 or eva.peroulis@tmhcraig.org. The opening is planned for late 2019.


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