weathermapSponsorship
 
The Information you need!
Search Archive:
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Entertainment
Mobile
Life
Contests
Money Saver
Subscribe
News Local
Print this story | Email this story | Comment (29 comment(s)) | Rate | - Text Size -

St. Mary's announces plans for new hospital

St. Mary's Health Center President Brent Van Conia announced Wednesday the hospital plans to build a new $200 million, 167-bed hospital on their land in Jefferson City near Highway 179. The hospital will replace the current one. (Stephen Brooks/News Tribune photo)

By Angie Hutschreider
angieh@newstribune.com
Published: Wednesday, February 20, 2008 4:39 PM CST
St. Mary's Health Center, which seven months ago abandoned plans to build a new $248 million hospital, announced Wednesday it will move forward with a slimmed-down version of the original project.

St. Mary's parent company, SSM Health Care, has approved $200 million in funding for a new hospital on the planned site near Missouri 179 in Jefferson City.

In the standing-room-only press conference, Brent VanConia, St. Mary's Health Center president, said SSM signed off on the construction of a 167-bed hospital, east of 179.

In a news release St. Mary's officials said, a letter of intent was delivered to the state's Certificate of Need Program, which governs health care planning across the state and will follow-up with a formal application in March.

VanConia said the new facility will be 40 percent larger than the current St. Mary's.

“The new hospital will bring the latest in medical advancements to the heart of Mid-Missouri,” he said. “It will create an improved healing environment.”

Bill Schoenhard, executive vice president and chief operating officer of SSM, said a bond issue proposed later this year will help provide financing for most of the $200 million.

Even after SSM announced it wouldn't fund the proposed hospital in Jefferson City, talks about how to improve the current site and when a hospital would be feasible continued, Schoenhard said.

“There was never a question of whether a new hospital was needed or not,” he added. “It was just getting it to a more realistic plan.”

The size of the hospital has been modified, as the original plans called for a new St. Mary's to have more than 190 beds.

Schoenhard said the adjustment to the number of patient rooms was “essentially the only changes that were made.

“It will still be a much larger facility than the current facility,” he added.

VanConia said the next several months will be spent meeting with architects to develop a site plan. It's expected that excavation of the area will begin in 2009, pending the construction of an intersection at the site.

The construction of the hospital should begin in 2010 and is projected to be completed in 2012, Van Conia said.



pencil ad


  Next
  City, police apologize for raid at wrong house
 


Article Rating

Current Rating: 0 of 0 votes!Rate File:


Before commenting read the News Tribune Forum's policies and procedures.
Thanks.

jmo wrote on Feb 28, 2008 10:43 AM:

" Moneybags: There were actually 13 laid off, not 8. SM did give them severance....as any company would have. They didn't do anything that any other company would have done. SM claimed that they needed to do the "laying off" to cut costs but then cut 13 people who didn't make anything. Where is the cost savings there? "

Report Abuse

go_fish wrote on Feb 25, 2008 8:49 AM:

" Ditto on your comment about cleanliness sportsmom, I've always used St.Mary's ER and hospital for minor ailments and found lack of cleanliness to be a problem. Even in the surgical ward, my room was dirty, in fact, my bed was dirty, the rails on the bed had black spots from lack of cleaning...long term lack of cleaning. Maybe this is my personal experience, but I don't think so. I have only visited others at Cap Region and yes it is 100% cleaner, but have always hear the quality of care is no better than St.Mary's. As the saying goes, if you have anything seriously wrong and want to live...go to Columbia or St.Louis for advanced care. "

Report Abuse

moneybags wrote on Feb 23, 2008 7:27 AM:

" So why doesn't the city and its "investors" buy the current St Mary's site for a convention center, instead of trying to get a $100M center that would never happen anyway.

BTW: the 8 layed off employees received 2 months pay + severance so they could immediately try and find work. They are one of the cities biggest employers. Occasionally hard decisions are made by any business, SM did more than most employers would have.

BTW: St Mary's opened here 20 years before Columbia ever had a hospital because of its Catholic tradition - there is a difference. When Columbia's first hospital opened it only did so because they raised taxes. Now we get a new hospital without a tax increase too!!! "

Report Abuse

jmo wrote on Feb 22, 2008 3:45 PM:

" RJ: They actually cut 13 people the first of November. Of those 13 NONE had salaries high enough to consider it a "cost savings", one was pregnant, one was a single mother and one just had a baby. St. Mary's does not take care of their staff and never has. "

Report Abuse

rjannx wrote on Feb 22, 2008 3:20 PM:

" real nurse: they did not cut 100 "people". They cut positions through attrition as I stated before. Just because you see it in the paper doesn't mean it's accurate.

newtv: Yes, there will be ancillary buildings on the site, but nowhere near as many as were proposed in the first site proposal. Once again, that is where the cost savings were realized. "

Report Abuse

online_editor wrote on Feb 22, 2008 2:00 PM:

" I removed a couple comments with specific accusations because the veracity of them can't be proven in the context of this forum. It's best to stick to giving opinions about general issues surrounding the news in order to avoid the potential of libel. Thanks. --Rick Brown, online editor, News Tribune "

Report Abuse

two_cents_worth wrote on Feb 22, 2008 12:12 PM:

" I found it interesting that nowhere in the article was it mentioned that SSM will 'abandon' the current facility once the new one is built.

So....any takers on the old hospital?

Or....maybe the State can renovate it and use it for state offices like they did with the Hotel Govenor? "

Report Abuse

lucy24 wrote on Feb 22, 2008 11:38 AM:

" St. Mary's Health Center is a remarkable place to work. The dedication to quality, compassionate patient care, and excellence is why I come to work every day.
St. Mary's scored at or near 100 percent in all patient standards measured by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. That is, 100% for heart attack care, 100 % for heart failure care, 97% for pneumonia care and 96% for surgical care.
St. Mary's is the hospital I choose for my loved ones. "

Report Abuse

mckfan wrote on Feb 22, 2008 10:59 AM:

" DeputyDog I must disagree with you, other area hospitals are not just interested in profit. Cap Region treats all who walk through the door as well as Lake Ozark and Columbia. I do not think that religion values have anything to do with the patient care, cleaness of the facility or services. I do know that St Marys is known for being a catholic hospital but that does not mean you can not get good health care anywhere else. I have been to both local hospitals as well as LOGH and UMMC and in my opinion Cap Region far exceeds any in patient care, cleanliness, friendly staff and physicians. CRMC won the quality service award for a reason. "

Report Abuse

moneybags wrote on Feb 22, 2008 6:30 AM:

" Are you all for real? A private corporation has just stated that it will spend $200 million of its own money to build a new state-of-the-art healthcare center in Jefferson City, and most of you seem to be quibbling about unimportant inaccuracies.
The annexation - they owned the land and they voluntarily were annexed.
The 100 person ayoff - almost entirely attrition - it possibly affected 8 people.
Prior hospital experiences and rumors - the numbers speak for themselves and St Mary's has made huge strides in all measures - you can catch any employee of any organization on a bad day, just don't let it blur your judgement on unrelated good news.
"

Report Abuse

newtv wrote on Feb 21, 2008 10:05 PM:

" I do want to add . St mary's is a fine hospital with excellent people and doctors. I don't have a complaint with the care there at all "

Report Abuse

newtv wrote on Feb 21, 2008 10:00 PM:

" I think St mary's said there will be physician buildings at the new site. I don't think rjannx is correct on this statement. They came up with the money by not replacing staff that quit yes but don't think that was costly in the long run. And do you really think by cutting those positions 48 million was saved?
I personnally think they have always had the money. "

Report Abuse

real nurse wrote on Feb 21, 2008 6:42 PM:

" to rjannx this is the paragraph directly from krcg... A St. Mary's spokesman says the hospital has made dramatic changes to improve its financial picture. They say in the past year and a half the hospital has reduced its staff by more than 100 people, improved billing and collection of patient payments... it doesn't say positions were not filled afer vacated it states reduced staff by more than 100 people. the sites you provide are great for core measures still Satisfaction scores??.. both hospitals are here for the community and want to do the best they can to take care of people. While you may not be administration Are you truley front line at the bed side? your loyality is very commendable "

Report Abuse

rjannx wrote on Feb 21, 2008 5:58 PM:

" I work at St. Mary's and have years. Let's set the record straight:

1. Decreasing the number of beds did not save $48 million in costs. The decision not to build the ancillary buildings (outpatient center, physician office buildings, etc.) account for the cost savings.

2. Annexation was voluntary. Read the editors comment. Enough said about that.

3. The "100 cut jobs" was accomplished by attrition of already empty positions. They just weren't filled once they became vacant. In total, two people lost their positions, eight were reduced in hours.

4. Compare SM performance at this independent site:
w ww.healthinsight. org/performance/hosp_rankings/hospitals.html AND w ww.focusonhospitals.com/Hospitals/Find.aspx

and i am not in administration. I am on the front lines. "

Report Abuse

peanut wrote on Feb 21, 2008 4:24 PM:

" JCchica,
Please refer to the online editor's comment regarding the annexation issue (below). The new hospital will still be inside the city limits. Just trying to keep the facts straight. :>)
"

Report Abuse

real nurse wrote on Feb 21, 2008 4:20 PM:

" Everyone has unique experiences at both hospitals in town. Patient satisfaction and Employee satisfaction scores speak for themselves.....anyone see those posted? "

Report Abuse

JCchica wrote on Feb 21, 2008 3:20 PM:

" Just wait - now Jeff City won't be able to stand it. St. Mary's not being in the city limits to increase their revenue even more. Look out! Annexation is next. The city just had to have the new Wal-Mart, so they annexed that side of town. What kills me is all of the increase in revenue doesn't seem to be doing anything. They expected 3 people to clean up all of jefferson city after the last ice storm. How many of you still have branches by the street? "

Report Abuse

sportsmom wrote on Feb 21, 2008 3:11 PM:

" As a former patient of St. Mary's, I have to disagree with the quality of care, at least in the emergency room. The maternity ward was great and besides one nurse, I had no complaints. But the emergency room--OMG. There is a longrunning joke around here that you don't go in there alone, if you want to come out alive. Sadly, my experiences with Capital Region were not significantly better, although they did have a much cleaner facility than St. Mary's ER could ever dream of. "

Report Abuse

real nurse wrote on Feb 21, 2008 12:46 PM:

" Go to KRCG and read the article talking about reduction in force of over 100 in how they saved money. How many of those were experienced staff? I find it interesting newtv is tired of hearing how great saint mary's is....i'v only read one remotely positive post about it. "

Report Abuse

DeputyDog wrote on Feb 21, 2008 12:45 PM:

" St Marys is the best hospital in Jefferson City due to it's Catholic foundation. Where other area hospitals are interested only in profit, St. Marys opens it's doors to the less fortunate on the basis of caring and compassion. Congratulations and keep up the good work. It's nice to see something with religious value taking the place of profit and greed. "

Report Abuse

newtv wrote on Feb 21, 2008 12:30 PM:

" I hope this dies down quickly I am already tired of hearing how great St Marys is around here. BLAH Blah Blah "

Report Abuse

newtv wrote on Feb 21, 2008 12:28 PM:

" This just seems like one big publicity stunt. It is great news for the community WHEN construction begins and staff salaries are competitive. "

Report Abuse

real nurse wrote on Feb 21, 2008 10:38 AM:

" While a new hospital is a great thing for our commuity and a new building will draw people in, the quality of patient care is the most important thing. The staff experience and compentency far out weigh a coat of paint. The front line staff ie the nurses and nurses assistance and house keeping etc make the hospital not the building. "

Report Abuse

newtv wrote on Feb 21, 2008 10:20 AM:

" I will be impressed with this new devolopement when it brings increased revenue to the hospital's employees. They have made the hospital the great facility it is and have worked overtime with out pay and worked short staffed nights weekends and holidays because all they ever heard was how broke the hospital was, and to do their part to cut cost. It was expected and demanded. NOw show them the money by giving the employees a decent cost of living wage. "

Report Abuse

online_editor wrote on Feb 21, 2008 10:15 AM:

" Just to clarify the annexation history: The St. Mary's new hospital property itself was voluntarily annexed, meaning the property owners asked and the city council agreed; no public vote required. Then in April 2006, voters approved annexation of about 542 acres immediately surrounding the proposed hospital site. The annexation vote set for April 2008 covers 600 acres along the Highway 179 corridor at and near Route C, which is farther south. --Rick Brown, online editor, News Tribune "

Report Abuse

go_fish wrote on Feb 21, 2008 8:49 AM:

" I said it before, I'll say it again, St. Mary's previously dropped their bid to build this hospital because the annexation failed. Now they are counting on the annexation to pass in April and using the new hospital to justify the need to annex so that city services are available and it will be billed as good for the city because of potential lost tax revenue if annexation fails. That being said, I'm am happy for a new hospital for JC and hope it DOES offer "one stop shop" services, including a desparately needed Level 1 Trauma center and accompanying rehabilitation services so the most critically ill don't have to wait to be life flighted to Columbia for emergency trauma care. "

Report Abuse

Goat Daddy wrote on Feb 21, 2008 12:59 AM:

" A new building will be nothing if the quality of staff is not upgraded. "

Report Abuse

shinymcshine wrote on Feb 20, 2008 8:31 PM:

" That better be one comfy mattress! "

Report Abuse

sportsmom wrote on Feb 20, 2008 5:23 PM:

" Did I read that right, they are building a hospital for $200m instead of $248m because they scrapped 23 beds? They said there were essentially no other changes. Who does their planning anyway, ha ha! There is more to this story. No way do they save $48m by just dropping 23 beds. "

Report Abuse


To add your comments you must be registered and logged in

*Member ID:
*Password:
 

Do not use usernames or passwords from your financial accounts!

Note: Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required!

*Create a Member ID:
*Choose a password:
*Re-enter password:
*E-mail Address:
*Year of Birth:
 

(children under 13 cannot register)

*First Name:
*Last Name:
Company:
*Home Phone:
Business Phone:
*Address:
*City:
*State:
*Zip Code:
 

Return to: News Local « | Home « | Top of Page ^


 -
Sports Poll
Online Poll
How wise is it for the federal government to pay $2.5 million for ads promoting the U.S. Census during the Super Bowl? Related Story
Very Wise
Somewhat Wise
Neither Wise Nor Stupid
Somewhat Stupid
Very Stupid
Don't Know / No Opinion
View Results

Related Stories



Top Commented Stories (more)

Local Headlines
 


rss Available Feeds
rss iconRSS Political News
rss iconRSS Press Releases
rss iconRSS Local News
rss iconRSS State News
rss iconRSS Business
rss iconRSS Sports
rss iconRSS Entertainment
About RSS Feeds

Or follow us here-

twitterFacebook

 

Find out about our RSS feeds and what they are.
Copyright © 2010. All rights reserved.
Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.