Work starts on free-standing ER in Madison County, latest in state trend
State and Madison County officials broke ground in the Harvest community north of Huntsville today on Crestwood Medical Center’s $22 million, 10-bed freestanding emergency department.
The goal of the 24-hour ER at the corner of Burwell Road and Highway 53 is “very, very simple,” Crestwood Hospital CEO Matthew Banks said. “We want to provide the surrounding areas and communities with access to emergency services, services that are traditionally provided in a hospital.”
Crestwood already operates a large privately owned hospital in Huntsville on Whitesburg Drive.
The freestanding ER also represents a trend in Alabama medicine. The state already has eight freestanding emergency departments in Baldwin, Mobile, Jefferson, Shelby and Lee counties. State regulators approved another freestanding emergency department on Wednesday for Cullman Regional hospital to be located in Hartselle.
Crestwood Medical Center, a private Huntsville hospital, broke ground on a new freestanding emergency department in the Harvest community in northwest Madison County. The facility is at the intersection of Burwell Road and Highway 53, at right, also known as Ardmore Highway.
The Harvest Emergency Department will be almost 12,000 square feet with 10 exam rooms, a laboratory, “full-array of imaging services, a blood bank and a “major trauma room,” Banks said.
The facility is different from an urgent care center or a physician’s office in its emergency-medicine trained staff, advanced equipment and around the clock operations 365 days a year, Crestwood said in a fact sheet.
It will also have a helipad for helicopter emergency flights and a full array of emergency services 24 hours a day.
“It’s the same team of physicians, nurses and staff that deliver care today,” Banks said.
Dr. Ric Koler, medical director of the ER at Crestwood Hospital, said the hospital’s clinical team has thought about this type of facility for a long time and is excited to get the medical center “up and started.”
“Our mission is to provide high quality emergency care to the people of north Alabama, excellence in clinical care, education, administrative stewardship, strategic initiatives,” Koler said. “Central to our mission is the creation of an environment of inclusion for persons with diverse backgrounds, cultures and abilities.”
Madison County Commissioner Phil Vandiver, who represents the area, thanked “Crestwood for what they’re doing for our community.”
The medical center’s size is estimated to be 11,000 square feet.