First Phase of Rush's Most Comprehensive Construction and Facilities Renovation in its History.
Rush University Medical Center hosted a ceremony July 11 to celebrate the groundbreaking of a new orthopaedic ambulatory care building, the first visible phase of construction in the medical center's seven-year comprehensive redevelopment of the Rush campus. The new 222,000 square-foot orthopaedic ambulatory care building will be located on the Rush campus immediately west of Ashland Avenue between Harrison and Flournoy streets. Outpatient offices and related facilities of the Department of Orthopaedics will occupy four floors of the five-story building.
Dr. Gunnar Andersson discusses the importance of the new Orthopaedic Ambulatory Building
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"This new facility will consolidate patient services into one convenient location and provide space for growth to meet the increasing demand for orthopaedic patient care services," said Dr. Gunnar Andersson, chairman of the Department of Orthopaedics at Rush. Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush, the private practice medical group whose members are on the Rush faculty, will close its location at 800 S. Wells in the River City building complex to consolidate its downtown outpatient facilities on the Rush campus.
In addition to outpatient clinic space, the orthopaedic ambulatory building will house physical and occupational therapy; a sophisticated imaging center (MRI, CT); the Gait Laboratory; orthotics and prosthetics services; offices for orthopaedic surgeons and staff; and a conference and learning center. The first floor will also include some retail space.
Construction will also begin this summer on a new parking structure and a new power plant for the Rush campus. Related underground construction will give Rush a new loading dock and materials delivery system for the campus. Together, with the orthopaedic ambulatory building, this first phase of construction will cost $137 million and is expected to be completed in 2009.
In 2004, Rush revealed its plans for the most comprehensive construction and facilities renovation program in its history. Dubbed "The Rush Transformation," the program encompasses Rush's plans to invest in new technology, build new facilities and improve patient care processes, while at the same time reorienting the entire physical campus around patients and their families.
Construction of a major hospital addition, including a new center for advanced emergency response, is expected to begin in 2008 pending project approval by the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board. The projected completion date is 2012. This facility will include a state-of-the art emergency services facility, the McCormick Tribune Center for Advanced Emergency Response, which will house special equipment and is designed to care for victims of major catastrophes. Renovations on the existing Atrium and Kellogg buildings will follow.
"This is a thrilling time for Rush. We are beginning to see the first visible signs of a transformation that will not only redesign and rebuild Rush's campus and landscape, but will also enable Rush to capitalize on advanced technology and more efficiently care for patients in the coming decades," said Dr. Larry Goodman, president and CEO of Rush.
Perkins+Will, architects for the Rush project, has extensive experience in the health care industry and with other large academic medical centers including Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and the Johns Hopkins Hospital, which also have facilities replacement projects.
In the design plans for Rush, special attention is being paid to environmental efficiency and responsiveness. Rush is seeking Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
The entire Rush transformation project will cost more than $800 million and will be financed through a variety of sources including philanthropy, income from operations, federal and local grants, debt financing and private funds for the ambulatory care building. The seven year philanthropic campaign, "It's How the Future of Medicine Should Be," has raised over $200 million of its $300 million goal in the first three years of the campaign.
