Washington, D.C.-based MedStar Georgetown University Hospital is opening the doors to its $750 million Verstandig Pavilion, Washington Business Journal reported Nov. 29.
At over 477,000 square feet, the six-story medical-surgical building will feature a larger emergency department, inpatient units and operating rooms. With 32 private exam rooms, the facility's new ER almost doubles the existing one, from 14,000 to 27,000 square feet.
Composed of 31 operating rooms on two floors, the hospital's surgical and perioperative services feature an intraoperative MRI system that can transport between the two. The building has three inpatient floors that each have 28 intermediate beds and 24 intensive care beds, totaling 156 private patient rooms. Med-surg care, neurosciences and transplant programs will also be shifted to these floors.
An ER- and OR-connected rooftop helipad will also be on the pavilion, along with high-speed elevators to move trauma patients. Underground, there will be a drop-off and pick-up area, three parking levels, and a loading dock.
Doubling the property's green space to nearly 6 acres, the pavilion has almost 1,000 windows to allow additional sunlight for patients and staff. While licensed to have a maximum of 538 beds, the space will increase the hospital's patient bed numbers from 425 to 465 and could expand further in the future.
The new ER will open Dec. 10 at 7 a.m., with the OR opening Dec. 11. Around 200 additional employees have been hired to help with clinical, environmental services, food and nutrition, and security positions.
"It's going to be a new workflow, a new workspace for a lot of our teams," Lisa Boyle, MD, president of MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, told the publication. "We need them to develop that muscle memory all while delivering the highest-quality, safest care."