Here’s the vision …

In June 2003, the Medical School’s clinical partner,  UMass Memorial Health Care , adopted a vision statement and described how its achievement should be measured. That vision statement—UMass Memorial Medical Center is to become one of the top ten academic medical centers in the United States by the year 2008—will be gauged by several factors, including the achievement of patient-focused excellence through the highest standards of quality care, patient safety and patient satisfaction; collaboration with the Medical School to provide excellence in clinical research and teaching; and becoming the employer of choice in Central Massachusetts.

These accomplishments, based on the essential commitment to improving the health of the people of Central New England through excellence in clinical care, service, teaching and research, are attributable to the availability of the latest advances in equipment and the facilities that support them. So, here’s another vision that will become a reality in 2005: a new, three-story emergency department located on the University Campus. This 264,000-square-foot structure will triple current Emergency Department space and enhance other services such as a direct link from the new ED to on-site MRI capabilities, state-of-the-art radiologic services, new operating rooms and an additional surgical intensive care unit. Called the Lakeside Expansion and pictured in the rendering above, this addition will ultimately provide patients with a facility that equals the exceptional quality of care our physicians, nurses and staff have been providing for the past 25 years.

…and here are the details

Since groundbreaking ceremonies for the Lakeside Expansion took place in September 2003, the University Campus community has witnessed major steps toward the completion of this important UMass Memorial project – including the demolition of the Emergency Department canopy in January 2004, pouring of the expansion's concrete foundation in March and the beginning of the steel erection in April.  Currently, a June target date is set for the completion of the Lakeside Expansion's framework.  During each step, the objective has been to support “business as usual,” maintaining hospital operations and public access to the facility and uninterrupted Emergency Department service. As construction continues, changes to daily operations will continue to be planned and coordinated with the project teams and their departmental and clinical liaisons. During each phase of construction, great care will be taken to ensure that patients will not be exposed to dust or debris, nor will their recuperative time here be disturbed. Although some noise will be unavoidable, all efforts will be made to minimize sound disruption to patients.  

Watch for further details on this important project. You may also wish to visit the UMass Memorial "Building Our Future" link at  http://www.umassmemorial.org/ummhc/index.aspx