Construction is finally complete on Rush Oak Park Hospital’s new $30 million state-of-the-art emergency department, and the building is expected to welcome its first patients later this month.
Hospital officials noted the project began nearly three years ago, and staff of all levels provided input on every detail, including just where to place oxygen lines to maximize patient well-being in each of the 22 private rooms.
“Even the smallest details were discussed to maximize comfort and safety for patients, and provide efficiency for the staff,” said medical director of the emergency department Dr. Navtej Sandhu. “The emergency department is the front door of the hospital for many patients. Seventy-five percent of patients enter our hospital through the emergency department.”
The new department, accessible from the corner of Madison Street and Maple Avenue, includes five fast-track triage rooms, two behavioral health rooms and a decontamination room. All rooms are equipped with state-of-the-art telemetry monitors and security features to protect all who use the building.
In total, the building encompasses 55,000 square feet of space, with 22,000 square feet devoted to the new emergency department. The department is expected to welcome its first patients on Oct. 16, and it replaces the hospital’s original emergency department that was built in 1969.
Hospital officials provided a tour of the new facility to local officials and community members on Oct. 10. It began in the new patient waiting room, which features a wide fireplace, enlarged windows and a large photo of the original Oak Park Hospital.
The building is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, certified, and includes an 11,000 square foot green roof. Hospital officials said 92 percent of the debris collected from its construction was recycled.
Along with the new emergency department, the hospital also saw upgrades to certain corresponding services, including new ultrasound and CT computerized tomography scan suites, both of which are located adjacent to the new building.
Hospital officials said the emergency department saw between 11,000 and 12,000 visits in 1997, however, it is now on pace to surpass 40,000 visits this year.
“With consistent patient volume increases in our emergency department over the years, the need for a larger and more modern facility became a priority,” hospital president and CEO Bruce Elegant said. “This new facility is designed around the needs of our patients and will enable us to provide better and more efficient healthcare to the communities we serve.”
Among those touring the facility included Oak Park village board members, village staff, state senator Don Harmon (D-39) and state representative Camille Lilly (D-78).
“It’s important to make sure we have affordable healthcare for all,” Lilly said. “With the recent closing of Westlake Hospital in Melrose Park, it is important we stand ready to address healthcare needs of the people of Illinois. Access to emergency care is one of the most critical services of any community. I often say if you don’t have your health, you don’t have much.”
Harmon, who was born at Oak Park Hospital, praised the leadership of Rush for constantly innovating and reinventing itself in an ever-changing medical field.
“The changing winds in health care nationally and at the state level require us to adjust and recalibrate,” Harmon said. “The [partnership] with Rush and Oak Park Hospital [beginning in 1997] was a dramatic change in the hospital, and I feel made Oak Park Hospital the local hospital.”
