First Phase Includes New Emergency Department, Laboratory, Atrium Lobby, Parking and Grounds

Decatur, IL -  St. Mary's Hospital began a new chapter in its 131-year history as hospital leadership, physicians, staff, volunteers, community leaders and invited guests joined together for the blessing and groundbreaking of a $31 million redevelopment project that will enhance patient care, comfort and service through the creation of a new patient-friendly main lobby, a new clinical laboratory and a new state-of-the-art Emergency Department.

When the project is completed, St. Mary’s busy Emergency Department will be relocated to a three-floor new wing of the hospital that will be built near the current main entrance and accessible via a new circular entry road. The new ED will increase patient privacy and improve patient and visitor flow.  The new, state-of-the-art Emergency Department will:

• Accommodate as many as 44,000 patients each year, which allows for expected growth. St. Mary’s currently records 33,000 ED visits during a typical year while guaranteeing all patients are seen within thirty seconds and care initiated in thirty minutes or less.

• Enhance patient privacy and encourage family involvement. The patient triage area will be separated from the ED waiting room and there will be a buffer between the exam rooms and the bustle and congestion of ED staff work area. Patients and their companions will enter treatment areas through large sliding glass doors, while staff and equipment will enter from rear doors off of a central work area. The ED design also will improve physician interaction with nurses and other clinical staff and make access to patients more efficient.

• Create a more convenient and comfortable trauma and ambulance reception area to assist the work of emergency medical technicians, police and fire fighters.

• Provide enhanced access for patients and clinicians to the Imaging and Laboratory departments. A new bank of elevators will connect the ED with the patient tower, as well as future rooftop helipad for emergency patient transport.

The lower level of the new ED wing will house the hospital’s clinical laboratory, one of the busiest departments at St. Mary’s. The move will free up the hospital’s current laboratory space for future use. The top floor of the new wing will be left vacant for now, but will be built out in the future to accommodate new surgical suites.

The new two-story main lobby, next to the Emergency Department wing, will be designed to create an atmosphere of tranquility while providing quick access to patient registration, a gift shop and, in the future, food service. The overall lobby exterior entrance will include new landscaping, gardens, water features and a covered, drive-up arrival area. The design is carefully planned to reflect the Franciscan belief in the healing capacity of natural surroundings.

For Macon County, the $31 million redevelopment project could add a total benefit of approximately $75 million.  $20 million would be in construction costs with 60% allotted to mechanical, electrical and plumbing materials and installation.  That 60% (or $12 million) would be handled locally.  In jobs, this project would have up to 280 people related directly to construction and 100 jobs related indirectly to needs by suppliers.  These jobs would also be provided for locally.

Funding for all phases of the St. Mary’s redevelopment project will be a partnership between the hospital, the Hospital Sisters Health System and the community. For Phase One, Hospital Sisters Health System, which sponsors St. Mary’s and 12 other hospitals in Illinois and Wisconsin, has dedicated $14 million raised through the sale of bonds. St. Mary’s is dedicating $7 million from the hospital’s working capital and cash reserves. Hospital officials are asking the community to donate $10 million for the project. To date, the community fundraising effort has generated over $7.5 million of the $10 million goal. Of the amount raised thus far, the St. Mary’s family – employees, board members, hospital volunteers and auxiliary and physicians – has given $2.5 million.

Upon St. Mary’s completion in 1961, the hospital was current with the inpatient-focused model of health care that was the trend at that time. As technological advances have increased the hospital’s ability to provide a wide range of outpatient services, renovations are needed to accommodate our growth in outpatient services and technology.  “As we set our master facility plan for the next 130 years, improved ambulatory access for our aging population is a priority,” said Theresa Rutherford, Chief Operating Officer/Chief Nurse Executive of St. Mary’s, “This project will result in more space on the first floor, allowing us to eventually move vital outpatient services to where they can be easily accessed.”

The overall design will reflect the founding Sisters’ Franciscan values and approach to healing.  “We follow Christ reflected to us in our Sisters’ ministry and the example of our patron, St. Francis,” says Mary Handley, Director of Mission and Spiritual Care at St. Mary’s.  Theresa Rutherford adds “As Franciscans, we believe our spirituality and our belief in God is demonstrated through nature as well as state-of-the-art technology and science.  Incorporating natural elements into the design of our facility enhances our healing environment and reinforces the message that God surrounds us.”  Water features, curved structures, natural light, plants and earth tones will help create a calm and healing atmosphere.

Three Sisters of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis opened St. Mary's Hospital on November 19, 1878.  A house on the corner of Wood and Webster Street served as the first hospital building.  In the first year, the hospital admitted 25 patients and provided home nursing care to 600 residents.  After acquiring additional property at the Wood and Webster site, the first hospital was constructed in 1881.  By 1944, St. Mary’s outgrew that building and made plans for a new hospital by purchasing 14 acres on East Lake Shore Dr. by Lake Decatur.  An additional 7 acres were purchased in 1953.  Construction began on the Lake Shore Dr. location in 1958 and the building was dedicated on August 6, 1961.  Additional building space has been added since 1961 with the development of the 1750 (built 2003), 1770 (built 1986), and 1900 (built 1970s) buildings to accommodate growth over the past 47 years.

St. Mary’s Hospital is one of thirteen hospitals in the Hospital Sisters Health System.  A not-for-profit organization, St. Mary’s Hospital is an all private room healthcare facility that combines modern technology with the caring spirit of the original founding Sisters.  St. Mary’s is situated on an attractive 21-acre campus overlooking Lake Decatur and offers a broad spectrum of comprehensive health services, including the latest diagnostic equipment, emergency, out-patient radiation therapy, pain management and a sleep center.  St. Mary’s also offers a wide range of community education and wellness programs.  The hospital is the site of a unique intergenerational day care center and is the community’s only hospital-based provider of behavioral health services.

For more information, contact Kelly Finn at 464-1300.