BUFFALO, NY – Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-27) joined local leaders, hospital administrators, doctors and Sisters of Mercy for the official groundbreaking of Mercy Hospital’s new emergency room.  The Congressman helped to secure $195,000 in federal funding for the project. 

“Mercy Hospital provides emergency services to more patients than any other hospital in Western New York and provides outstanding care to all it serves,” said Congressman Higgins.  “This project will meet a growing community need.”

The new emergency department will add 46,000 square feet and triple the size of the current unit.  Total cost of the project is expected to exceed $30 million.  The approved federal funding, also supported by Senators Clinton and Schumer, will be used toward the purchase of imaging technologies which will enable health care providers to deliver enhanced and more cost-effective health care.

Serving Buffalo and Southern Erie County, Mercy Hospital is a Center of Excellence for Stroke and Cardiac Care.  Part of the Catholic Health System (CHS), the hospital is estimated to have an annual regional economic impact of nearly $500 million.  It is a cornerstone for the community’s future growth and vitality. 

-30-

Background on the proposed new Emergency Department at Mercy Hospital

Over the past few years, Mercy Hospital of Buffalo has made a significant investment in upgrading its facilities and acquiring the latest medical and surgical technology available.  With more than 20,000 admissions annually, Mercy Hospital is the busiest hospital in the region and the home of the Catholic Health System (CHS) Heart Center and the system’s only Robotic Surgery program.  Mercy Hospital already offers among the most advanced cardiac and surgical procedures available. Now, it’s focused on one of its most significant new construction projects to date – the addition of a brand new $30 million Emergency Department along the front of the hospital facing Abbott Road.

This new 54,000 square-foot addition will change the face of Mercy Hospital.  As the largest emergency service provider in Western New York, the hospital has been gearing up for this project for quite some time.  Construction is anticipated to begin in 2008.  Mercy Hospital is awaiting approval of a Certificate of Need from New York State Department of Health.

This is the second major Emergency Department construction project for the Catholic Health System. In 2005, CHS opened a new Emergency Department at St. Joseph Hospital in Cheektowaga, providing a model for high quality care and service delivery for other emergency department renovations and improvements within CHS. 

Following a similar process to the one undertaken at St. Joseph Hospital, Mercy is relying on input from teams of physicians and staff to create a new Emergency Department that features the latest information and emergency medicine technology in a more aesthetically pleasing environment for the than 38,000 patients who seek emergency care each year.

Mercy Hospital will literally triple the size of its current ED, offering the latest advances in equipment, technology and comfort. The hospital is also looking at service delivery and the relationship between the ED and other departments within the hospital to provide our patients with the best possible care in the shortest possible time.

In its final design phase, the new ED at Mercy Hospital will feature all-private exam rooms, including 30 “universal” treatment rooms, two airborne isolation rooms, and two cardiac/trauma resuscitation rooms, along with expanded space for nursing and support services. The Mercy Hospital team learned from St. Joseph Hospital’s success and will replicate many of the process and design features that have resulted in more efficient care and better service.  The overall design goal is to create a facility that offers greater flexibility in more comfortable, patient-friendly surroundings.

The outside exterior of the building, for example, will feature a row of windows to allow for natural light in the treatment rooms. Other features of the new Mercy facility include a main lobby with reception area, vestibule, offices and support space, and a connecting corridor to the current main entrance of the hospital. The building will also include a roof level helipad with connecting elevator for air transport of emergency cases. 

Between its 24/7 Urgent Care Center at the Mercy Ambulatory Care Center (MACC) in Orchard Park and its hospital-based Emergency Department, Mercy is the largest emergency service provider in Western New York. The new construction, separate from our existing Emergency Department, will enable Mercy to maintain full service to our patients throughout the project.”