Facility improvements will reduce overcrowding, enhance overall care
Breaking Ground: Pictured from left are Peter Capodilupo, Chairman, Newport Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees; Happy van Beuren, van Beuren Charitable Foundation; Crista F. Durand, President, Newport Hospital; Larry A. Aubin, Sr., Chairman, Lifespan Board of Directors; and Dorienne Farzan, Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust.
Newport Hospital today launched its public campaign to expand its emergency department by announcing a $3-million gift from the van Beuren Charitable Foundation and a $1.5- million challenge grant from the Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust. Both foundations are longtime supporters of the hospital and Aquidneck Island charities.
The hospital’s $12.5 million construction project is needed to better meet Aquidneck Island residents’ needs as well as the demands put on the hospital by the growing summer tourism industry.
Pictured from left are Lisa Lima-Tessier, MS, RN, CEN, director of emergency services at Newport Hospital; Anthony Napoli, MD, medical director and chair of emergency medicine at Newport Hospital; Dorienne Farzan, Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust; and Happy van Beuren, van Beuren Charitable Foundation
The construction will nearly double the number of treatment and exam rooms, critical to keeping wait times low, improving patient privacy and advancing the ED’s best practice models. Treatment rooms will increase from 17 to 29 and include a new behavioral health section and a four-bed observation unit.
“It’s time that the expertise and compassion our caregivers provide are complemented by a healing environment that is spacious, modern and comfortable for patients and families,” said Crista Durand, president of Newport Hospital. “We are thrilled that the van Beuren Charitable Foundation and The Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust are so committed to helping Newport Hospital provide the very best in care when our patients need us the most.”
Hope H. van Beuren, founder and chair emerita of her family foundation, said, “Our mission is to invest in the quality of life and quality of place of Aquidneck Island and surrounding communities. The hospital is most important for the betterment of the community and the Foundation recognizes that the Emergency Department must be expanded to address Aquidneck Island’s growing health care needs.”
“It is our pleasure to once again partner with Newport Hospital on a project so critical to the families of Aquidneck Island,” said Donald Christ, chair of The Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust. “We hope our challenge grant will engage community members in a campaign that truly is near and dear to everyone on the island.” The Trust will match every donation to the project up to $1.5 million in total.
To date, the hospital has raised $10 million during a “silent phase” of the campaign, receiving gifts from individuals and other organizations. Future fundraising efforts will include a broad outreach to community members throughout Newport County to engage their support for Newport Hospital.
“It’s time that the expertise and compassion our caregivers provide are complemented by a healing environment that is spacious, modern and comfortable for patients and families,” said Crista Durand, president of Newport Hospital.
Crista F. Durand, President, Newport Hospital
The last significant renovation to Newport Hospital’s emergency department was made 20 years ago. At the time, the space could accommodate 22,000 patient visits annually. Today, the same emergency department is 30 percent over capacity, managing 33,000 patient visits per year. The island’s aging population and significant growth in tourism during the summer – a time when ED patient volume swells by 40 percent – have significantly stretched resources.
“Strain on health care access – seasonal or not – is not sustainable. Newport Hospital is committed to providing exceptional care in a timely manner year-round,” said Durand. She added that the renovated emergency department will factor in future growth, and could accommodate as many as 40,000-plus visits annually.
The physical transformation will include a four-bed behavioral health unit, providing patients more privacy and dignity. Visits by patients with addiction and/or mental health issues have increased by 17 percent during the last three years and now represent eight percent of all emergency room visits.
A “clinical decision unit” will also be added, and is considered a national best practice. These four rooms will be for patients who need extended emergency department treatment and observation but may not require admission as an inpatient, lowering the total cost of care.
Other highlights of the project include:
- Three triage spaces for arriving patients, compared to one.
- A lounge and waiting area for patients waiting for tests and their family members.
- Dedicated workstations in each treatment space to facilitate bedside registration and documentation, and ultimately reduce wait time.
- Space that is geriatric and pediatric friendly
The existing emergency department will remain operational throughout the construction, which is expected to begin in July and be completed by September 2019.
For more information about the project, please visit: giving.lifespan.org/Newport/Campaign.