The Legacy Silverton Medical Center, located at 342 Fairview St., announced the completion of phase one of the $37 million expansion to the main medical center, which added more than 21,000 square feet in new space, equipment and treatment areas.
The official opening of the expansion is Monday, March 18, when patients will be able to be seen, according to Legacy Silverton spokesperson, Kristen Whitney.
The $37 million that completed the first phase was a part of $58 million pledged by Legacy Health in 2016, which would be used to improve three areas: physician recruitment, equipment upgrades, and a new modernized medical facility.
The newest addition will expand the medical center from 12 to 20 patient rooms while also modernizing pre-existing areas rooms.
The funding for the expansion was gathered through a combination of corporate and individual donors as well as the Silverton Health Foundation board.
In order to staff this expansion, Legacy Health has also recruited a host of emergency department doctors from the group Northwest Acute Care Specialists Inc.
While Joe Yoder, president of Legacy Silverton Medical Center, did not give an exact amount of new staff hired, he described how it was based off of the increase in patients seen at the facility which was at around 10 – 15%.
Yoder also noted the medical center is looking for more OBGYNs for the clinic.
Keizertimes was permitted to tour the expansion before its opening with Yoder and James Berokoff, the senior construction manager with Legacy Health.
The new facility welcomes patients with large signage indicating the new entrance as well as providing a larger intake area than what was previously used.
The facility tour journeyed through the expansion, particularly the treatment rooms and new trauma room.
When walking the new hallways of the center, the structuring lends itself to making access from one side of the facility to the other easier and faster, due to the several hallways connecting the main building to the expansion.
The issue of becoming lost in a maze is gone, as nearly all hallways in the expansion not only connect to each other but to the entrances as well as the rest of the facility.
During the tour, both Yoder and Berkoff described how emergency department doctors were crucial throughout the process, giving the primary input for what type of setup would be best for the rooms.
The new, spacious trauma room is state of the art, with new equipment, spacious and calming windows and sights as well as a series of removable panels on one wall to ensure that repairs can be conducted easily, extending the life and utility of the room.
The department will offer more women’s services due to the increase in space and have more space for patients needing a medical isolation related to a sickness as well as a new entrance with a covered pick-up zone in order to shield patients from adverse weather as they enter the facility.
Other additions include: the Silverton Birth center gaining a new family waiting room, a new helicopter landing pad to make air ambulance travel and pick-up easier and finally a new chapel for all faiths for families seeking time for prayer.
According to Yoder, “Providing high-quality health care has been our top priority at Legacy Silverton Medical Center for decades.”
“This construction project positions us well both now and into the future as we look to ensure patients in the mid-Willamette Valley can access world-class health care services close to home,” Yoder finished.
For more information about Legacy Silverton Medical Center, please visit legacyhealth.org/doctors-and-locations/hospitals/legacy-silverton-medical-center.
Contact Quinn Stoddard
[email protected] or 503-390-105
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