Ease of access drives St. Elizabeth Hospital expansion
03 / 13 / 2006
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Maria Nelson, Media Relations
Affinity Health System
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APPLETON, Wis. – A driving force behind the 50,000-square-foot-expansion and renovation of
The expansion that opened to the public March 13 is home to patient registration, a heart and lung rehabilitation (cardiopulmonary) gym and a new hospital lab. Additionally, a 438-space parking ramp was constructed for patient and visitor parking. Opening in September will be a new outpatient test center.
“What we are trying to do is keep all outpatient areas close to the main entrance,” says Gary Kusnierz. “We want to be able to separate the private, patient areas from the outpatient areas.”
The hospital’s heart and lung rehabilitation (cardiopulmonary) gym has expanded by 40 percent and contains new equipment. A portion of that equipment was provided through a grant from the St. Elizabeth Hospital Community Foundation. “We are seeing an increase in seniors seeking our services, and as a result we need additional training equipment with the most safety features available,” says Rosanne Brandau, coordinator of Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation. The gym has been accredited by the American Association of Cardiovascular & Pulmonary Rehabilitation.
A new clinical lab will be located in the lower level of the expansion. Working with designers and lab employees, the new lab was designed with efficiency in mind. These efficiencies resulted in more lab space, even though the physical size of the new lab is the same as the current one. “From the very outset, we have been able to create efficiencies in the design of this hospital,” Kusnierz says.
Between now and September, construction crews will work on renovating the vacated areas of the hospital into a new outpatient testing area. That area, located north of the new atrium, will house diagnostic radiology including:
- Nuclear Medicine and nuclear stress tests
- Ultrasound and Echocardiography
- EKGs
- Cardiac stress tests
- Blood draws
- Outpatient diagnostic services currently being offered in the lower level of the Affinity Heart & Lung Center.
“By consolidating these diagnostic services, patients and staff benefit from increased efficiencies in this new, state-of-the-art space,” says Robert Turner, chief operating officer for the Northern Region of Affinity Health System.
The Helen G. Fowler Conference Center will move to the second level of the expansion area. The conference center, which can be divided into three smaller meeting rooms, can house 72. This area will be used for community education classes and other community meetings.
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For the Editor:
Affinity Health System, a faith-based regional health care network, is the Fox Valley’s second-largest employer, according to the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce & Industry. For the fourth consecutive year, Affinity has been named one of the nation’s top 64 health systems based on clinical performance according to Thomson Reuters, a leading provider of information and solutions to improve the cost and quality of health care. For ten consecutive years, Affinity Health System has been named to the SDI (formerly Verispan) Integrated Health Network Top 100, an annual assessment of the 100 most highly integrated health care networks in the nation. Both St. Elizabeth Hospital in Appleton and Mercy Medical Center in Oshkosh rank among the top 1 percent of hospitals nationwide in terms of quality and efficiency, as determined by the 2007 Premier | CareScience Select practice National Quality Award. Members of Affinity include Mercy Medical Center and Mercy Health Foundation, Oshkosh; St. Elizabeth Hospital and the St. Elizabeth Hospital Foundation, Appleton; Affinity Medical Group, a regional network of 25 family practice and specialty clinics – 22 of which are recognized as NCQA Level III medical homes, the highest level of recognition – in 14 communities; Calumet Medical Center, Chilton; and Affinity Occupational Health.