Phelps Turns 50 and Plans to Grow
October 14, 2005
As part of its 50th Anniversary extravaganza, Phelps Memorial Hospital Center broke ground for a new Emergency Department and medical services building on Sunday, October 2.
Phelps was created 50 years ago when community leaders, including the late John D. Rockefeller, III, merged the Tarrytown and Ossining Hospitals. A challenge grant from the Rockefeller Foundation coupled with a gift of land and funds from the James Foundation was instrumental in making the merger a reality.
Earlier this year the hospital announced a $12 million capital campaign to build the new Emergency Department. The campaign has already raised $10.7 million. Included in that amount is a grant for more than $400,000 from Congresswoman Nita Lowey, who spoke during the groundbreaking ceremony.
“In Westchester and across the country, hospitals are experiencing economic pressures severe enough to cause some to close, I am pleased that Phelps is poised for continued growth,” said Keith Safian, President and CEO. “Our growth is a direct result of astute planning and thorough implementation by our board, management, and staff, coupled with extraordinary support from the community.”
Funds for the medical services building are being provided through $27 million in Mount Pleasant Industrial Development Agency bonds. The five-story, 100,000-square-foot medical services building (the second one on campus) will house the Emergency Training Center; outpatient physical rehab services that will include an aqua therapy pool; Phelps’ Wound Healing Institute, the Donald R. Reed Speech & Hearing Center, and physicians’ offices. Construction is expected to be completed by April 2007.
In 2004 the village of Sleepy Hollow approved 430 new parking spaces, however, during the summer; the hospital submitted a plan for additional spaces. Also under consideration is a parking garage of 750 spaces. Overall the hospital seeks to increase its parking capacity by 50 percent. Currently there are 800 free parking spaces.
Phelps has also increased its acreage from 64 to 71 acres. The additional seven acres were acquired from the New York State Department of Transportation.
Construction of the new Emergency Department is expected to be completed by the end of April 2008. At 18,000 square feet, the new ED will be nearly three times larger than the present department. With 30 private rooms, the emphasis will be on patients’ physical and emotional comfort and will feature state-of-the-art medical technology.
The new Emergency Department will also include: an Acute Treatment Pavilion; an Imaging Suite – CT Scan, Digital Imaging and Archiving, Digital X-ray system; Central Patient Station Monitoring; Central Nursing Station; a quiet room; and a medical library/resource room. Designated pediatric treatment rooms will be in the new PromptCare area, which will feature a cheerful playroom for patients and siblings. There will be a dedicated Decontamination Area with its own ventilation system. Waiting areas will be exclusively for family members, as patients will be brought directly to their room for registration, assessment, and treatment.
In 2004 the Emergency Department provided care to more than 22,000 patients. It’s projected that in the next 10 to 15 years 44,000 patients will visit Phelps’ emergency room. This figure is based on annual volume increases due to Westchester’s aging population and new real estate developments in Sleepy Hollow and nearby Tarrytown. These projects include the Roseland Property Company plan for the old General Motors plant, which would bring 1,562 housing units to the community, and National RE/sources plans for the Tarrytown waterfront, which is expected to add 247 units.
Over the next five years the hospital plans to spend $50 million in capital improvements. Besides the new ED and medical services building, the south wing of the hospital will grown by 2,400 square feet.
Phelps Memorial Hospital is a 235-bed community hospital with 450 physicians, representing 34 different medical specialties. Phelps is the Westchester Satellite for Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, a clinical affiliate of Mount Sinai Hospital, and the newest member of the New York Presbyterian Healthcare System.