By HFT Staff

ThedaCare has broken ground on its new emergency department (ED), which will expand, redesign and create additional care space in Neenah, Wisconsin. 

The enhancements of the ED at ThedaCare Regional Medical Center-Neenah will advance coordinated care throughout the ThedaCare service area, including critical access hospitals, giving patients greater access to innovative and specialized care.  

The groundbreaking highlights the first major phase of construction. Teams will  expand the ED, doubling the current care space. After completion, there will be 20 exam rooms, including specialized rooms for trauma and behavioral health, with the latest technology, equipment and space to provide patients with the best care experience.   

The ED layout is focused on patient safety and quality of care. The healthcare team’s workstation will be located in the center of the area, with treatment rooms on the perimeter, giving teams a direct line of sight into each room.  

Leaders recognized increasing demand for behavioral health support in the ED. The new space includes designated rooms for behavioral health services, keeping the safety of patients and team members top of mind. 

Current services, including care in the ED, will remain open during the construction process. 

Also, during this phase of construction, the ThedaStar Air Medical Program Helipad will be relocated to be adjacent to the ED entrance. The relocation will allow patients to be rapidly transferred for trauma services once they arrive, when time is critical. There will also be a separate hallway for patients experiencing trauma. 

Groundbreaking Tied to Overall Modernization 

The design of the enhancements is aimed to reduce costs, improve capacity, create sustained operational efficiency with more efficient work areas for healthcare teams. The design was created in partnership with physicians, clinicians and staff. Additional highlights of the modernization include: 

• Enhancing specialized space to care for stroke patients as the region’s only comprehensive stroke center, a designation given to those hospitals that have specific abilities to care for the most complex stroke cases. 
• Updating operating rooms to include advanced robotic surgical equipment and creating four dedicated robotics suites to support better outcomes for patients, and develop an outstanding teaching environment as leaders in robotics surgery. 
• Updating the family birth center. 
• Creating a new environment for the women’s center, which includes mammography, diagnostics and imaging, and bone density testing. The space will establish a comfortable area where women can feel confident in their personalized, proactive health care decisions. 
• Creating Main Street, where key diagnostic outpatient services will be located on the first floor of the hospital to ensure easier patient access.   

Inside the hospital, some offices and departments have been relocated in order to begin work on the creation of Main Street, where key diagnostic outpatient services will be located on the first floor of the hospital to ensure easier patient access.  

The next phase of construction, which will include work on the creation of Main Street, is scheduled to begin in fall 2022. The full modernization is expected to be complete in fall 2023.