| Emory Report | Volume 52, No. 29 |
CLH begins expansion By Michael Terrazas Crawford Long Hospital's long-planned expansion will break ground Thursday, April 20, in a ceremony at the corner of West Peachtree and Prescott, marking the official start of a $270 million project that will transform the Midtown hospital by fall 2002. "This event is especially important because it will commemorate the beginning of a new future not only for Crawford Long Hospital, but for all our employees, physicians and community," said John Henry, CEO of Emory Hospitals. "Because our employees have contributed to making Crawford Long Hospital such an integral part of health care in Atlanta, we invite them to celebrate as we build an even healthier future for Crawford Long and our community." Henry will preside over the ceremony, which will include remarks from Albert Blackwelder, Crawford Long chief operating officer, and Alice Vautier, chief nursing officer and associate administrator for patient services. The program will also unveil a Crawford Long time capsule that will be sealed in the new building. The capsule, set to be opened in 50 years, will contain items suggested by hospital employees such as an employee ID badge, a birth certificate from a baby born April 20, patient bills, group pictures and other items. "Our pharmacist wanted to include specimens of a couple drugs, such as insulin, that will not be used in 50 years," said Mary Hart, director of nursing services integration. Hart, along with Billy Morton, director of support services, co-chaired the committee that put the capsule together. "We got so many great suggestions it's been a really difficult task to decide which items we should include." Whoever opens the capsule will be reminded of what Crawford Long was before the remodeling, which will consolidate outpatient services currently spread over three city blocks into one 22-story, glass-and-stone building. Included in the structure will be a six-story, 500,000-square-foot diagnostic and treatment center topped by a 16-story, 400,000-square foot medical office building. The plan also calls for a new parking deck that will accommodate 1,150 vehicles. "This initiative will create a first-tier medical facility that will set a new standard for health care delivery in Atlanta in the 21st century," Henry said. "The cornerstones for the project are convenience for patients, doctors and staff, continued clinical excellence, and enhanced community development." Michael Johns, executive vice president for health affairs, said, "Crawford Long Hospital has provided the best in health care services in Midtown for generations. This major redevelopment reflects our dedication to continuing that commitment." In December, Emory Health-care received approval for its Certificate of Need from the state Department of Community Health, which essentially was Georgia's go-ahead on the plan. Cousins Properties is the developer, and HKS Inc. of Dallas and Pickard Chilton Architects of New Haven, Conn., are the architects for the project. The medical office building is scheduled to open in spring 2002, and the diagnostic and treatment facility will open that fall. Inpatient rooms (except for labor and delivery) will remain in the Peachtree Street building, but the remainder of outpatient services, along with labor and delivery suites, will be part of the new construction. Founded in 1908, Crawford Long is Atlanta's third-largest hospital and serves more than 30,000 emergency and inpatients each year through more than 1,000 physicians and 2,000 staff. Return to April 17, 2000 contents page
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