Emerging Needs

Consider the world of 30 years ago. In the scope of history, it doesn’t seem like an inordinately long time has passed since then. A closer look, though, reveals that life has changed immeasurably. Home computers, for instance, were scarce then?a standard item now. Cell phones were a futuristic technology?an irreplaceable extension of our personal equipment today. No CAT Scans or MRIs existed, no laparoscopic surgery was performed?all vital components of medicine today. And the pace of change is only quickening.

Since the construction of the existing hospital building in 1976, a myriad of changes has taken place that have impacted the delivery of care at St. Vincent’s Medical Center. The population has grown significantly. Healthcare technology continues to evolve at breakneck speed. A broad shift from inpatient to outpatient care has occurred. Holistic care in a healing environment, always a Daughters of Charity hallmark, has become even more a staple of 21st Century medicine.

St. Vincent’s, as is its tradition, has been remarkably diligent in keeping pace with the changing landscape of healthcare by continually enhancing the Medical Center. Improvements in 2005, alone, included a 30-bed Intensive Care Unit; a new, futuristic, $18 million, 27,000-square foot surgical suite; the installation of two 64-slice CT scanners, two ultrasound machines, a nuclear medicine camera, and, a new filmless all digital Picture Archival and Communications System (PACS); the construction of an interventional radiology suite in the Department of Radiology; and the opening of our Sleep Center.

Today, significant new challenges continue to emerge that require bold action. Staying abreast of change is no longer adequate. Leaping ahead and setting standards that will endure into the future is critical. The St. Vincent’s Medical Center Board of Directors has responded with the development of an extensive $140 million facilities plan, consisting of new construction, expansion, modernization, and reorganization that will encompass 250,000 square feet of clinical space and chart the foreseeable future of St. Vincent’s Medical Center.