November 11, 2004
Genesis Medical Center Plans Renovation At East Rusholme Street Campus
Davenport, IA - Genesis Medical Center, Davenport has announced that it will renovate the third an fourth hospital floors on the East Rusholme Street campus beginning in January 2005. The focus of the 18-month project is improved patient care resulting primarily from enlarged and enhanced nursing stations, updated patient care technology and private patients rooms that are more conducive to patient rest and comfort. Construction will be completed in five phases in order to provide uninterrupted service to the community and will follow a project plan that has been two years in the making.
In addition to the new, expanded nurses stations, increased technology and renovated patient rooms with private showers; also included in the nearly $7 million project are new ventilation and air conditioning systems; increased support and storage space, a dedicated in-patient dialysis area, and new, more welcoming waiting areas for families. "This renovation will enhance the care environment for our patients and provide efficiencies for staff and physicians," says Carole Reid, Vice President, Patient Services, Genesis Medical Center, Davenport. "As a result of the extensive planning, we expect any inconvenience to our patients and their families will be minimal."
When finished, the entire fourth floor will be devoted to cardiac patients who will benefit from a new, state-of-the-art telemetry system that will provide centralized, continuous cardiac monitoring. This new centralized telemetry system will enhance patient care not only for patients of Genesis Medical Center, Davenport, on both the East Rusholme Street and West Central Park locations, it also will benefit Genesis patients throughout the health care system. In 2006, the telemetry system will be extended to provide high-tech monitoring capability to patients at Genesis Medical Center, Illini campus in Silvis and even Genesis Medical Center in DeWitt.
The construction plan is designed to minimize interior disruptions. Workers will access the hospital through walkways on the roof that lead to temporary doors in the exterior walls of the third and fourth floors and, therefore, will not require use of the public elevators. Materials for the renovation also will be brought into the hospital in this way and demolition debris will be removed using trash chutes on the outside of the hospital. Temporary walls will be built inside to separate the construction areas from active patient care areas on each floor and "negative airflow" will be used inside the construction areas so that dust and fumes are vented to the outside.
The first and second phases will have the heaviest demolition. Whenever possible, crews will concentrate on the same areas of both floors, minimizing disruption and noise and making it easier to work on the utility risers, which extend through the floors. Any work required in active patient care areas will be coordinated with the affected units. Keeping the hospital in full operation is the primary goal of the project plan. "We've learned a great deal from past renovation projects so we know what works and where we need to innovate to find a new solution," said Mike Sharp, Manager, Planning and Construction, Genesis Health System. "Our coordination gets better as we learn more from each new project."
