MINISTRY HEALTH CARE
St. Elizabeth Hospital of Appleton, Wis., has opened a new emergency department and surgery procedure area. The renovation is part of a $65 million construction project slated for completion by the end of this year.
The updated department has 48 trauma, emergency, flexible use and surgery and procedure rooms; four infusion suites; and a hyperbaric oxygen chamber. Patient rooms feature soft lighting, sound-absorbing walls and nature murals. The renovation includes a spirituality room for patients, family and staff, and a family grieving room.
Gary Kusnierz, St. Elizabeth vice president of performance excellence, said the emergency department project was necessary because the old department was built in the 1970s and was outmoded.
Also as part of the master plan, St. Elizabeth has relocated outpatient rehabilitation facilities. It is upgrading oncology services and women's services including labor and delivery, and it is expanding its surgical and operating units, with a general surgery room and a hybrid operating room. This year, it will consider starting a new project to replace some patient rooms, according to Kusnierz.
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