North Caddo Medical Center will begin construction Monday, January 14th. This seems like a surprising statement seeing as the medical center was “under construction” from September of 2013 to early 2017. However, the rural hospital continues to defy the odds with the growth of services for their rural area.
The 2019 construction will expand the radiology department to make way for full-time MRI services. The hospital has made mobile MRI services available weekly for patients in the past. However, with assistance of the NCMC Foundation’s capital campaign, the service will soon be present within the medical center. The medical providers are looking forward to the availability of the service for their patients on a full-time basis. The medical staff also noted the advantages of having an in-house MRI service, which will include the advanced quality images on stationary equipment versus mobile units.
The construction will also provide an additional 3 emergency rooms and the repositioning of the ER admitting office. Unfortunately, with growth comes growing pains. This will include the relocation of the entrance for the Emergency Department. During construction the main entrance, facing highway 1, will be the walk up entry for the Emergency Department. The ambulance entrance will remain open for ambulances and patients who are unable to transfer to a wheelchair. Signs will be placed through the campus to assist patients and families in locating the emergency room.
NCMC’s 2019 construction will be much different than the total replacement construction previously held. The new project has a timeline of 9 months by general contractors Lincoln Builders. There will be exterior construction to expand the ER entrance hall but a great deal of the construction will be within the present walls of the facility.
The funding source for the new construction comes from the original USDA loan. With great planning and diligence, the new medical facility was completed more than 1 million dollars under budget. The remaining funds will be utilized to make MRI services a reality, as well as the additional ER rooms that were cut during the initial planning of the new hospital.
The NCMC Foundation is in their last stretch of fundraising for the MRI equipment which will be housed in the new construction. Donor and board member Greg Hall stated “This is exciting! It is always great to see the support of donors come to fruition. We cannot wait to complete the capital campaign to assist NCMC in providing their patients full-time MRI services”. If you would like more information on the NCMC Foundation, contact their office at 318-375-4025.