Healthcare
- Client: Van Wert County Hospital
- Architect: Design Collaborative
- Facility Type: Healthcare
- Location: Van Wert, OH
- Date Completed: 7/2010
- Cost: $4.1 Million
For more information contact Michael Bluhm Van Wert County Hospital Emergency Deptartment Expansion
Van Wert County Hospital is a general medical and surgical hospital located in Van Wert, Ohio that has been providing healthcare services since 1905. It is accredited by the Joint Commission. Its physicians perform an average of 516 inpatient and 1,377 outpatient surgeries per year.
Van Wert County Hospital’s emergency room had gone from treating 13,000 patients in 2003 to roughly 18,000 in 2008 and was quickly running out of room. The department’s seven beds were serving about 2,000 patients each year. The standard is about 1,500. In 2007, hospital staff treated 2,000 patients in the hallway and diverted ambulances from the hospital three times according to Mark Minick, CEO.
Hospital officials decided it was time for a 12,000-square-foot addition along U.S. Route 127 with a prominent emergency entrance facing the intersection of Route 127 and Hospital Drive. Additional parking to replace the area the new addition would utilize would also be part of the project.
After completing previous projects for Van Wert County Hospital, Weigand was asked to expand and renovate their Emergency Department under a Construction Management contract where the CM is also the Constructor. Work started in July of 2009 and was substantially complete by July of 2010. Several Van Wert contractors and Fort Wayne contractors were used on the job, which was a boost to the local economy. Weigand closely coordinated work activities with the facility and subcontractors to maintain patient and ambulance access while expanding all of the existing entrance and parking areas, as well as relocating existing utilities. All existing emergency exits were also maintained during construction.