ALABAMA STATE EDITION
231
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72 Florence
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Huntsville
20 Decatur
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A Supplement to:
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Gadsden
78 59 Anniston
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Birmingham Bessemer
82 Tuscaloosa
65 280
20 82 Auburn
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80
85
Selma
Phenix City
Montgomery
82 65
February 1 2017 Vol. XXIX • No. 3
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“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded in 1957.”
Dothan
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Mobile
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Your Alabama Connection • Rich Olivier, Atlanta, GA • 1-800-409-1479
$20M Hospital: Future of Health Care in Wedowee By Cindy Riley
Described as the future of “Tanner has supported improving health care in Randolph voters, with more than 86 percent backing the proposal. health care in Randolph County, a County for years. We operate two medical practices in “We’re proud to partner with the Randolph County commore than 50,000-sq. ft. (4,645 sq Randolph County. Woodland Family Healthcare and Tanner munity to keep a local hospital in the county, and we’re m), three-story, $20 million hospital is taking shape in Primary Care of Wedowee, formerly the Wedowee Clinic, grateful for their support. A local hospital is more than conWedowee, Ala. The new facility is being built on the are each part of Tanner Medical Group, and Tanner has venience — it’s jobs, it’s economic investment and it’s an Tanner/East Alabama campus on South Main Street, where already invested more than $7 million in a brick-and-mortar assurance that timely care is available when a loved one much of the infrastructure to support a contemporary hospi- commitment to the region through the construction of needs it.” tal facility is already in place. Howard said discussions about partnering “Wedowee Hospital, as it stands today, with the Randolph County community date cannot stand at all much longer,” said Loy back almost two decades, when he and a Howard, president and CEO of Carrollton, family practice physician with Woodland Ga., based Tanner Health System. “The Family Healthcare began discussing ways hospital is small and outdated. We have the community and the health system could found that updating the building to modern work together. building codes for medical facilities and “We started asking ourselves, ‘How are Americans with Disabilities Act compliwe going to have a facility this community ance would be prohibitively expensive. can be proud of? How are we going to have Parking is scarce, and there’s no helipad to a facility that will attract the best and brighttransport the most acute patients to est health care providers to this region?’ Anniston, Birmingham or Carrollton.” This is an investment in our children’s The new Tanner Medical Center/East future, and our grandchildren’s future.” Alabama in Wedowee will provide 24-hour Randolph Medical Center shut down in emergency care, critical care support, inpa2011, which had a significant impact on the tient and observation beds, a surgical suite area. and advanced diagnostic imaging services. “The closing of the hospital in Roanoke Howard said at a time of physician shortwas a real blow for the community,” said ages nationwide, efforts to recruit additional Howard. “It’s also one of the factors that providers to serve the existing Wedowee made it so critical to keep the hospital in Hospital are futile. Wedowee. “It’s just not the kind of place many new “The reason a new hospital is being built physicians see themselves wanting to pracin Wedowee is because the people know tice. Any attempt to make the improvewhat an asset it is for their community. You ments to the current Wedowee Hospital don’t have to look far anywhere in the would’ve been hampered by cost. The size Southeast to see communities who suffer of the facility’s lot limited any potential after their hospitals close.” future expansion. That’s why building a In May, 2016, more than 250 Randolph RA-LIN and Associates photo new facility was really the most viable solu- Described as the future of health care in Randolph County, a more than 50,000-sq.-ft. County residents, community leaders and tion to keeping a hospital in Randolph (4,645 sq m), three-story hospital is taking shape in Wedowee, Ala. employees from Tanner Health System County.” gathered to mark the start of construction. Construction of the hospital is expected to take about 15 Tanner/East Alabama.” The building will be the fifth hospital in the Tanner system, months, with a grand opening in fall 2017. The hospital is Getting the current project off the ground, however, was joining Tanner Medical Center/Carrollton, Tanner Medical expected to draw residents from throughout eastern no small task. To finance building the new structure, Tanner Center/Villa Rica, Higgins General Hospital in Bremen, Ga., Alabama. and community leaders took the issue to the county’s voters, and the inpatient behavioral health facility Willowbrooke at “We even wanted to give the facility a name that reflects seeking approval of a special purpose sales tax to raise funds Tanner in Villa Rica. its emerging role as a destination not only for Wedowee and for the hospital’s construction. Tanner would manage, staff Construction of the replacement hospital is moving forRandolph County, but for the entire region,” said Howard. and outfit it, if residents covered the cost of construction. ward at a steady pace. Andrew Stewart, project manager of “People from throughout the region will be traveling into Efforts by locally organized community groups made the general contractor RA-LIN and Associates, said crews are Randolph County for care, and Tanner Medical Center/East difference. The referendum to build a new hospital in currently placing lightweight insulating concrete, along with Alabama reflects that regional appeal. Randolph County received overwhelming support from the see HOSPITAL page 6
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