UC Health broke ground on an expansion of the emergency department at the University of Cincinnati (UC) Medical Center. The long-awaited project will more than double the square footage of the existing emergency department, expanding capacity and improving flow. Several prominent members of the community, including Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley, came out in support of the project at the groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday, September 21.
"UC Health is making an historic investment in their Uptown Campus, $60 million of which will be dedicated to enhancing their emergency department," Mayor Cranley said. “UC Health, the Uptown Consortium, and so many other partners continue to make the integral investments that will transform our community for the better. I am grateful for all these stakeholders who are focused on maintaining quality care while bringing transformational development to our city."
The expansion will add 41,000 square feet onto the existing 35,000 square-foot emergency department. The emergency department expansion and renovation are part of a $221 million “Forward” project which which is a five-year project that was announced in October 2019. It is the largest capital investment in UC Health’s history. Construction will be completed in late 2023 and ready for patients by early 2024
“This project is symbolic of the proud impact of UC Health to Uptown, greater Cincinnati and our entire region,” said Uptown Consortium, Inc. (UCI) President and CEO Beth Robinson. “We could not ask for a better community and health partner to help anchor our district.”
UC Health serves as the region’s only Level I trauma center. As part of the expansion project, the existing emergency department at UC Medical Center will also be renovated. Access for patient arrivals by ambulances or vehicles will also be reconfigured to improve on patient flow. The new emergency department tower will include an observation unit, a flexible ICU, “surge capacity” for emergency or crisis situations, a shelled floor for future inpatient care use, and a top mechanical floor that will enable a future vertical build of the tower.
Patient care will not be interrupted during the project. Additionally, the project includes numerous other projects across UC Health’s Clifton Campus, which spans 14 acres in the heart of Cincinnati’s Uptown district.
“This investment is about more than simply new facilities. These projects will significantly improve the way we serve our patients, from how patients access our campus to how our clinicians deliver care every day,” said UC Health Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Evaline A. Alessandrini. “This is an exciting time to be part of UC Health.”
In the 2020 fiscal year, UC Health served more than 371,000 patients, had more than 2 million visits and admissions, 114,402 emergency department visits and 8,189 transfers from other hospitals.
In addition to providing quality healthcare to the region, the UC Department of Emergency Medicine is home to the first residency training program in the U.S., celebrating its 50th anniversary last year. The department attracts top medical students from across the country to train in Cincinnati.
Tina Koch, RN, a nurse at UC Medical Center for 17 years, said the investment is representative of the importance of UC Health to the community. “We are proud of the outstanding care that our emergency department team provides every day. This represents an investment in our patients and our people and will allow us to care for more patients in need.”
UC Health has hired an experienced team of healthcare design, engineering and construction firms to lead the Forward project. CannonDesign, the global firm, will oversee project design, Cincinnati-based Messer Construction Co. Is the construction manager, and Ohio-based HPlex Solutions will serve as the owner’s representative to assist in managing the project.
The revitalization project began with the groundbreaking of the $68 million UC Gardner Neuroscience Institute outpatient building in 2017, which opened its doors in April 2019. In February 2019, UC Health also announced $30 million in improvements to the Clifton Campus, including improved wayfinding and the renovation of the UC Medical Center lobby and main entrance, which is currently underway.
“The new emergency department and surgery building, coupled with the multitude of other projects, will serve to enhance and reshape UC Health’s Clifton Campus,” said Bob Feldbauer, Vice President of Facilities for UC Health.
Read more about the revitalization of UC Health’s Clifton Campus in Uptown here.