By Healthcare Facilities Today

Rural and small-town communities face unique challenges in meeting their patients’ needs, but carefully designed new facilities can address those problems. An article in the July issue of Healthcare Design profiles the new Coquille Valley Hospital, which serves three communities in coastal Oregon south of Eugene. 

Before replacing the original 1969 facility, CVH stakeholders did a planning process that addressed market data, facilities needs and financing. Goals for the new facility included private rooms for patients; a common nursing station to serve med-surg, obstetrics and the emergency department; and increased physician recruitment. The planning team, consulting regularly with everyone involved, went through multiple 3-D models that saved considerable time and money in the design process. 

The final design was a $24.6 million replacement facility, opened in 2012, that slightly increased capacities for patient census, outpatient surgery, radiology, ER and lab cases. Funding through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Office of Insured Healthcare Facilities resulted in interest rates of 3.5%, instead of the taxable rates of 6% to 7% at the time. 

The three-story, 60,000-square-foot facility met the hospital’s goals, and has been even busier than projected; patient census has doubled, but following an initial planned payroll increase of 10%, further increases in staffing and pay have been held to 2% annually. Private patient rooms overlook a wooded ravine, and CVH has succeeded in attracting three new physicians to commit their entire practice to the hospital. The new site also includes CT and MRI capability, a three-room surgical suite, therapy services, and an educational area. 

Read the article.