Collaboration creates ‘Hospital within a hospital’

By Joanna Slominski

Digi-Key breaks ground on 1 million-squarefoot expansion

At least 1,000 new jobs expected as a result of the $300 million project

FARGO – Something new is building at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, where patients were first admitted in July. Just as the Mortenson construction team wrapped up work on the new nine-floor hospital, things began bustling on the seventh floor.

That’s where Vibra Healthcare is building a 31-bed, long-term acute care hospital or “hospital within a hospital.” It’s scheduled to open by the end of the year.

This unique partnership was formed by Vibra Healthcare and Sanford Medical Center of Fargo. Near the end of Mortenson’s five-year engagement to build the new $494 million medical center, the company was approached to build Vibra Healthcare’s “hospital within a hospital.” That meant the west wing of the medical center’s seventh floor would become Vibra Hospital of Fargo, a long-term acute care hospital whose 31 beds would serve patients who need intensive acute care following discharge from other area medical facilities.

Vibra Hospital of Fargo has been providing acute care for regional patients since 1998. The company has some 92 long-term acute care facilities across the United States, including the center in Fargo and one in Mandan, N.D.

The company will be relocating its Fargo services from Sanford South University medical center to the new medical center, with the first patient tentatively scheduled to be admitted in December.

The new collaboration helps all parties. For Vibra Healthcare, it results in a seamless connection to Sanford. For Sanford, it creates a closer tie to acute care facilities for those patients who get discharged but need additional care.

For patients and families, the partnership will create an easy transition for those needing extended care.

And for Mortenson, the new build-out means an additional $9 million in construction business that will be completed by 2018.

“What’s special and unique in this collaboration is that we are technically ‘embedded’ within the Sanford Medical Center,” said Custer Huseby, regional CEO for Vibra Healthcare.

“This is the best possible situation for those patients who are discharged from the hospital but need additional care. They will have continued high-skilled services with few disruptions.

“This partnership also offers close coordination with care providers and convenient records transfer,” Huseby said. PB

Joanna Slominski CONSTRUCTION EXECUTIVE MORTENSON CONSTRUCTION OF NORTH DAKOTA

THIEF RIVER FALLS, Minn. -- Walking across the expansive parking lot just west of Digi-Key in Thief River Falls takes about five minutes.

Coincidentally, the massive asphalt slab is nearly the exact footprint of the planned millionsquare-foot expansion at Digi-Key, a distributor of electronics components that already employs 3,200 in this western Pennington County town of 8,000.

In mid-September, dignitaries from the company, the city and around the state broke ground for the expansion, which could eventually add more than 1,000 jobs at Digi-Key and, leaders predict, spur about $184 million in new state revenue annually.

The expansion project itself could cost as much as $300 million.

About 70 people attended, including Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton, U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., Mayor Brian Holmer, members of City Council and several members of the state Legislature.

“I’m just in awe,” Dayton said. “I cannot begin to express how important your company is in Thief River Falls. This is a great example of all of us working together for the state of Minnesota. Congratulations again to everybody involved.”

The project first was announced in the spring and officially put in motion earlier this summer. Company leaders praised the work of local and state politicians who pushed for incentives that were used to make the project happen, including sales-tax exemptions to offset costs, loans from the Minnesota Investment Fund and the sale of city property for the expansion.

It could help the company increase its employees to as many as 4,500 by 2027. By comparison, there were 654 employees in 1997.

Starting wages at Digi-Key generally are around $32,600, with a good benefits package.

“These are very good jobs that will be created and are being created at Digi-Key,” said Rick Trontvet, Digi-Key’s vice president of administration and human resources. “This project will be a win for Thief River Falls and the state of Minnesota.”

Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald