"Our facilities are experiencing tremendous growth due to the increased number of patients we are serving," says Chuck Welliver, Banner Arizona's regional president. The decision to push the project, he says, is a reflection of Banner Health's commitment to the Valley. The expansion represents Banner's fourth major construction project a Valley hospital and will get under way in the coming weeks.
Good Samaritan is marking its 90th year of operation. It has an 11-year track record of providing health care to more patients than any other Arizona hospital.
The facility is located at the southeast corner of 10th Street and McDowell Road. The upcoming project will deliver 117 more beds and 142 extra private rooms. The hospital currently has 508 beds and 227 private rooms. "This expansion project is key to Good Samaritan remaining an Arizona leader in providing highly specialized services and programs," says Good Samaritan CEO Steven L. Seiler.
The project also calls for a building to be constructed at Good Samaritan's front entrance. The structure ultimately will provide space for ambulatory care, medical imaging diagnostics and cardiac care services. A complementary parking garage also is in the offing. The medical imaging department is being touted as the centerpiece for the new building. Also coming is a new intensive care unit, slated for a January 2002 opening and renovation in the main tower, which currently assigned to Phoenix Children's Hospital. The children's facility is planning to relocate April 28, 2002 to a new building at the intersection of Thomas Road and Hohokam Expressway.
The hospital's capacity limited Good Samaritan physicians seeking patient admissions for diagnostic procedures or even scheduling the needed health assessments. "Many times during the summer months, we've been caring for close to 500 acute-care patients," says Seiler. "There is no longer significant seasonal variation in volume, as it was in the past. Obviously, this construction project solves these issues created by operating at capacity levels."
The full project will be done by first quarter 2004, but beds will be opened as work wraps up on the fourth and eighth tower floors. Many beds, it's anticipated, will become available by fall 2002.
Good Samaritan is a premier medical center in the Southwest that a Level I Trauma unit, cardiac and cancer care, organ and bone marrow transplants and high-risk obstetrics. It also is a leading medical educational facility.
Banner Health Systems has been on a high-rolling budget at all of its facilities in the region. Thunderbird Samaritan Medical Center in northwest Phoenix is cutting the ribbons on more than 100,000 sf of hospital space, including the addition of a patient tower. In October 2000, Desert Samaritan Medical Center in Mesa also opened a tower and boosted its pediatric and maternity space. Just last year, Mesa's Lutheran Heart Hospital on the Valley Lutheran Medical Center campus opened its doors.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
