Medical center expands

Shawnee Mission Medical Center celebrated its Critical Care Services Expansion with a ribbon cutting ceremony Jan. 21.

Units in the 265,000-square-foot expansion will open to patients Jan. 26.

“This is obviously a really big day for Shawnee Mission, and we think for Johnson County, as well,” said Samuel Turner, president and chief executive officer at Shawnee Mission Medical Center. “Over the years Shawnee Mission has grown and we have tried to keep up with it.”

Shawnee Mission’s Critical Care Expansion includes an expanded emergency department. The expansion almost doubles the emergency department’s capacity, with 40 beds compared to the 26 beds previously available.

Chief Nursing Officer Sheri Hawkins, RN, MS, said the expansion should keep the emergency department from reaching capacity. She said in the past Shawnee Mission’s emergency department has filled and ambulances have been diverted to other hospitals due to lack of space.

“We hope to completely eliminate that,” Hawkins said.

The expansion adds 32 acuity–adaptable private beds for cardiology. These beds will allow patients to progress to recovery without switching to other units.

The addition also includes four new operating rooms, 28 intensive care unit beds, a gastrointestinal endoscopy laboratory, a 22-bed post-anesthesia care unit and a 32-bed ambulatory care center.

The hospital broke ground on the $112 million expansion in 2005.  Donations and capital funds paid for the project.

Architects chose a contemporary design for the addition, which can be seen from Interstate 35. The glass and stone building is designed to allow much natural light to enter.

“I now believe in the vision of the architects,” Turner said. “This is a beautiful building.”

The addition’s interior features yellow and teal walls, with rooms that allow families to gather outside the waiting room and designated areas for professional collaboration.

“We really wanted to promote a collaborative environment,” Hawkins said.

That collaboration will include new staff hired to serve in the expansion.

Hawkins said the hospital has not finished hiring for the Critical Care Expansion. New hires will include about 100 nursing positions and 200 staff positions.

“We are also hiring nurse practitioners for the intensive care unit,” Hawkins said.

Nurses who already work at Shawnee Mission said they are ready to work in the new units.

 “It’s exciting,” said Joyce VonLunen, RN, patient care supervisor. “It’s going to be really nice.”

Hawkins said most nurses share VonLunen’s sentiments.

“The excitement is just palatable,” Hawkins said.

Trackback(0)

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Write comment