The New Hampshire Health Services Planning and Review Board voted unanimously on Thursday April 15, 2010, to approve Wentworth-Douglass Hospital’s Certificate of Need Application for a $55 million construction/renovation project.
President & CEO Gregory Walker testified at the public hearing on behalf of the project. “The project is necessary,” Walker said, “because Wentworth-Douglass Hospital is among the fastest growing hospitals in New Hampshire and it is the Seacoast’s leading medical center with the highest number of admissions, births, and emergency department visits of any Seacoast hospital for the past three years.”
Mr. Walker noted inpatient facilities and the current Women & Children’s spaces are inadequate to meet the needs of patient care. Upon completion of the project the Hospital will have a sufficient number of inpatient beds available, offering private room accommodations to meet patient expectations for the foreseeable future.
The first floor of the addition will feature a new Education/Resource Center for medical staff education, staff development, patient and family education and community health education. A new Women & Children’s Center will occupy the second floor for Birthing, Pediatric and newborn care with a dedicated C-section OR. The third level will feature private rooms for medical/surgical patients and the fourth level will remain shell space for future expansion.
The project will span several years in three phases:
Phase 1: 2010 – Construction of a “new” Old Rollinsford Road 150 ft. south of its current location to allow space for the new addition – this project is currently underway and estimated to last approximately six months.
Phase 2: 2011 - Parking Garage - 2-story Expansion
Phase 3: 2011/12 – 2014/15 - New 4-story, 137,000 sq. ft. addition to include a 1,000 sq. ft. addition to the Central Utility Plant.
In addition 41,000 sq. ft. of existing hospital space will be renovated for improved patient care services.
