McLEOD REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER 1 MAY 2018

From left to right: Dale Locklair, Leander Crawford, Dr. Thomas Lewis, Dr. Jeremy Robertson, Marie Saleeby and Rob Colones break ground for the new Emergency Department at McLeod Regional Medical Center on May 1, 2018.

McLeod Health held a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Emergency Department at McLeod Regional Medical Center on Tuesday, May 1, 2018. Designed to meet growing emergency medical needs of the region, the enhanced and expanded Emergency Department will relocate from the west entrance of the campus on Ravenel Street to the east side of the campus between the Pavilion Tower and McLeod Medical Park East.

The Emergency Department at McLeod Regional Medical Center has experienced rapid growth in the number of patients cared for annually. The current location does not allow for expansion to accommodate this volume of patients, and the expansion will support improvements in flow and efficiency.

“At McLeod, we continue to fulfill our mission by providing the highest level of emergency and trauma services to those living from the midlands to the coast. As the regional Level II Trauma Center, we care for our neighbors and friends as well as those travelers who pass through our area and experience a traumatic event,” according to Marie Saleeby, Senior Vice President and Administrator of McLeod Regional Medical Center.

A new Emergency Department will provide an increase in capacity, allow for improvement in the flow of patient care and efficiency, as well as support easier access for patients and families.

“The scope of the facility will dramatically improve the timeliness of care available to emergency and trauma patients who seek life-saving treatment at McLeod,” added Saleeby.

In his remarks, Dr. Jeremy Robertson, Medical Director of the Emergency Department, said, “The McLeod Emergency Department currently has 40 acute treatment rooms which accommodates 50,000 patients a year. However, we care for in excess of 77,000 patients a year in the Emergency Department, and this number continues to grow.”

The new Emergency Department will include 73 rooms designed to serve 109,500 patients a year.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to expand and serve our patients with quality, safety and service at the core of our work,” Dr. Robertson said.

“The relocation, adjacent to the Pavilion Tower, aligns the patients with nearby operating suites and surgeons, diagnostics and imaging services. We consider this a unique opportunity for our staff and physicians to be involved in the development of such a great medical asset to our community,” stated McLeod Emergency Physician Dr. Thomas Lewis.

Additional features of the new Emergency Department, according to Dr. Lewis, will include:

• Five dedicated resuscitation areas large enough for life-saving equipment with quick access to ambulance bays, a CT scanner, and operating rooms to serve stroke, trauma and critically ill patients.
• Larger patient rooms to accommodate family members.
• Pharmacy, Lab and Radiology located within the department for quick access.
• “Psych-safe” rooms to keep behavioral health patients safe and eight separate beds for the Psychiatric Holding Area

“On behalf of the McLeod Health Board of Trustees, thank you all for joining us today as we celebrate this milestone in our history. We are looking forward to the future and continuing to provide the region with quality, lifesaving emergency care,” said Leander Crawford, a McLeod Board Trustee and Chairman of the Planning Committee.

“This project must not be viewed as simply additional bricks and mortar to an ever growing medical system. This new Emergency Department will offer superlative care, ease of access and delivery of the highest level of treatment,” added Crawford.

Dale Locklair, Senior Vice President of Planning and Facilities Management, stated that the new Emergency Department, an $89.5 million expansion project, is scheduled to open in December 2020.