$55M expansion beefs up Nassau University hospital
BY RICHARD WEIR
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Monday, March 24th 2008
Nassau University Medical Center is set to unveil Tuesday a new $55 million expansion that will revamp its emergency department - doubling its size - and remodel its radiology department and Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program, officials said.
The project, expected to be completed by late 2010 or early 2011, will boost the size of the existing emergency department from 26,000 square feet to 52,750 square feet.
The new, one-story addition will be built adjacent to the existing cafeteria, using about one half of its space in order to increase the number of treatment rooms from 43 to 82.
The new emergency facility, the first renovation since the hospital opened in 1974, will feature new state-of-the art facilities, including an acute adult care area, a pediatric treatment room, a
fast track unit, a critical care area serving the requirements of Level 1 Trauma, OB/GYN and crisis intervention areas, and new imaging rooms for MRI, CT, ultrasound and other radiology functions.
The enlarged emergency department will also have a helipad atop its roof, accessible by a new elevator bank, and separate entrances facing Hempstead Turnpike for walk-in and ambulance patients.
The existing emergency room, which is accessed from Hempstead Turnpike but opens into the eastern side of the building, will become the home of an enhanced psychiatric emergency program, which currently is located in an adjoining smaller space.
Hospital officials said the modernization project, which will be funded by state and county programs, is needed in part due to a projected increase in emergency department visits from some 75,000 last year to some 125,000 visits annually over the next decade due in part to an aging population and development projects.
"This major modernization program marks another important step in the turnaround of [the hospital], ensuring its future financial viability and enhancing emergency department services for Nassau's residents," Arthur Gianelli, the hospital's president and CEO, said in a statement.
He added that the expansion "will offer the community the latest in emergency department services with increased ability to respond to mass casualty scenarios and will solidify [the hospital's] position as a major health care provider on Long Island."
$55M Expansion Beefs Up NUMC Emergency Dept
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