Providence breaks ground on new facility at North Kelsey MONROE - The city and hospital officials celebrated the groundbreaking of Providence Regional Medical Center’s new $22 million facility at North Kelsey early this week.
Both current mayor Robert Zimmerman and former mayor Donnetta Walser were scheduled to speak at the event along with hospital officials.
The facility, which will begin construction soon, is expected to be open by fall 2013 and will replace the current Providence facility at 14692 179th Ave. SE.
Providence CEO Dave Brooks served as master of ceremonies during the event which took place Tuesday, Nov. 6 from 9 to 10 a.m. at the building’s future site at 19200 North Kelsey Street. The public was encouraged to attend.
“It’s a pretty important day for us to be celebrating,” Providence spokeswoman Cheri Russum said. “It’s a big commitment for us.”
Other speakers included CEO for the Providence Medical Group Tom Yetman and Providence medical director Dr. Deb Nalty who said she is “excited” about bringing more specialists closer to home.
Many Monroe residents currently have to travel to Providence Everett to see their specialist. The new facility will bring a wealth of specialists to Monroe including ear, nose and throat doctors, gastroenterologists, urologists and sleep health specialists.
Nalty spoke about Providence’s new advanced medical records system which will help coordinate care among the medical group’s locations.
“We made a huge investment in the electronic medical records,” Russum said. “It’s kind of like the Cadillac of records keeping.”
Russum said Walser spoke about her experience as a current patient, while Zimmerman talked about how the new center will benefit Monroe’s economy by attracting patients from neighboring communities to visit the big-budget facility.
Walser has been a patient at Providence for 30 years when she made an appointment with then new doctor named Jeff Hambleton.
“I personally feel that good health care begins with a good relationship with your physician,” Walser said. “Providence illustrates this. The new facility will be a great asset to the community.”
Providence has a long history with Monroe, having already served the city for three decades. The old building will be replaced by the new facility and will be adjacent to Lowe’s and Red Robin on North Kelsey Street.
“We’re very pleased to bring Monroe residents into a new patient-friendly environment because we’ve really been here for decades,” Yetman said.
The sale on the five-acre property will bring in about $2.5 million for the city, which owned the property.
