Cathy Gilbert/Clarendon Citizen
CMH breaks ground on expansion
It took a lot of work from a lot of people but the day was finally here.
Clarendon Memorial Hospital broke ground Monday on a $22.5 million, 60,000 sq. ft. expansion that will be the biggest project at the local healthcare facility since the major renovation in 1992.
A standing room only crowd from across Clarendon County gathered at an area between the cafeteria and the EMS headquarters that was already cleared and leveled to ceremoniously “turn some dirt” on the project that will change healthcare in the region.
The first phase of the expansion will bring a new surgery department with three operating rooms, two procedure rooms and 14 recovery bays. The second floor will gain 24 new private patient care rooms. There will be a completely re-designed emergency department with 22 treatment spaces, according to Bryant Brown, vice-president of GMK Associates Inc., the firm that has designed and is building the project.
“Design/Build is a new trend in institutional construction because it allows for a ‘guaranteed maximum bid,’ and protects the pricing of all services for the client,” Brown explained. “This allows the hospital to be good stewards of the taxpayers’ money.”
The second phase of the project will be the re-fitting of the spaces that are being replaced in the first phase.
Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the project is the plan to build the expansion “green.” GMK has designed the expanded area to be LEED certified.
LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system, providing third-party verification that a building was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the standards that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.
“This will be the first hospital in South Carolina to receive this prestigious designation,” said Jeff Bernagozzi, who directs LEED projects for GMK.
“Buildings such as hospitals consume 12 percent of all the potable water in the U.S. and produce 39 percent of all carbon emissions, topping even transportation,” he added. “By building to LEED specifications we know that this building can save 30 percent in energy costs, provide better treatment outcomes, cut down on infections in the building, shorten the length of in-patient stays and improve employee retention.”
The expansion will incorporate best practices such as high-efficiency heating and air systems, rainwater harvesting, energy-efficient lighting and low volatile organic compounds (VOC) in paint and adhesives.
A brief roster of dignitaries and representatives took the stage before the shovels were placed into service.
Rep. Cathy Harvin highlighted the fact that an expanded healthcare center would create jobs and be an asset to those considering making their home in Clarendon.
“This 60,000 sq. ft. expansion will bring new health professionals to our area and will provide current residents with job opportunities in the healthcare field,” she said. “Above all, it will provide this community with the necessary healthcare support infrastructure that must be in place for us to provide services for our current population and for new residents to come.”
Nurse Rachel Chandler, a CMH employee for nearly 40 years recalled how far CMH had come in those years.
“I remember when the maintenance staff was also the EMS staff,” she said.
“I remember when labor and delivery was two labor beds and one delivery room. A mother would be pretty much alone until she got close to delivery and then the charge nurse would take over. Today we have top obstetricians and a wonderful labor and delivery wing. We used to have only one surgeon and he was on call 24/7. Today we have many surgeons, including an orthopedic surgeon. We have many specialties represented right here. It is with great humbleness that I salute those who made this expansion possible.”
“We are the most progressive rural county in South Carolina,” declared Sen. John Land. “While other counties are losing population, we are not. With other rural hospitals cutting back and facing closure, we are expanding. It is because we are all pulling together.”
Speaker after speaker recognized the vision of the Board of Trustees and Chief Executive Officer Ed Frye in moving forward with the expansion. That gratitude was reflected right back to the supporters gathered in the crowd.
“If it wasn’t for each and every one of you, this would not be possible today,” said Frye. “I have been here almost 21 years. This is home. This is where I plan to retire. This project shows how committed this community is to providing improved healthcare. This hospital will serve as a role model for rural healthcare.”
Officials from GMK estimate the new and renovated spaces to be completed in 2012.
For more than 40 years, GMK Associates has specialized in healthcare and educational planning, design and construction in North and South Carolina and Georgia.
