CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Congressman Mike Thompson was the featured speaker at an Oct. 15 gathering of community leaders and hospital representatives celebrating the planned $12.1 million renovation and expansion of St. Helena Hospital Clearlake’s emergency department.
The project is scheduled to begin with a ceremonial “wall breaking” on Nov. 10 at 8 a.m.
Jennifer Swenson, the hospital's vice president of operations, and St. Helena Hospital President and Chief Executive Officer Terry Newmyer also spoke at the Oct. 15 event.
Thompson praised the hospital for its commitment to improving the accessibility and quality of health care to area residents.
“This important project will help enhance the health and vitality of our community,” Thompson said, noting that the renovation will also help the local economy by adding jobs and boosting support for local businesses.
In addition to Thompson, community leaders attending the event included Clearlake Mayor Judy Thein; Supervisor Jeff Smith; Sheriff Rodney Mitchell; Lake County Fire Protection Battalion Chief Willie Sapeta; Jim Dowdy, Kelseyville Fire Department.; St. Helena Hospital Clearlake Governing Board members Arthur Bikangaga, MD, Mark Cooper, DDS, Fred Poucher, Jr., and Marc Shapiro, MD; and hospital executive medical staff members Paula Dhanda, MD, and Michael Shepherd, MD.
“Today is about building for the future,” Swenson told the gathering. “We are transforming care from the inside out by establishing a program that allows our physicians to remain inside the hospital to attend to the needs of our patients; implants the high quality standards that St. Helena Hospital in the Napa Valley has known for years; and provides an environment that supports clinical innovation, education and partnerships for our staff. We are also replacing old equipment with new, state-of-the-art equipment.”
The renovation will add five state-of-the-art patient monitoring rooms, bringing the total number of private rooms to 12. Two of the new rooms will be for trauma patients.
The project also will improve the configuration of the emergency department, providing a private ambulance entrance, a welcoming entrance for walk-in patients and visitors, and a pleasant, comfortable environment in the larger remodeled waiting area.
The triage area will be redesigned so that patients can go directly from the emergency department lobby to a private bed, if necessary.
Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf .
