Trinity to expand RI campus

By Ann McGlynn | Wednesday, May 16, 2007

TODAY: (Updated 6:03 p.m.) A $34 million investment at Trinity Medical Center’s Rock Island campus will include a $5 million surgical expansion that will accommodate new technology and allow for more efficient scheduling, officials said today.

The new surgical suites, the largest expansion in the history of the 35-year-old facility, are expected to be open in early 2008. They will be on the northeast side of the building.

“This will allow us to continue to provide the very best care for our patients,” said Bill Leaver, president and CEO of Trinity.

The projects, he said, also communicate a “significant statement.”

“We are going to have a very long life in this community,” he said.

In addition to the new suites, the project will more than double the number of private patient rooms at the campus and upgrade electrical, safety, heating and ventilation in the building, Leaver said.

The surgical rooms will be much larger, will have three times the power, have the best lighting available and provide surgeons with the latest in imaging capabilities, including the ability to send and receive images while performing surgery, said John Roth, a general surgeon.

Most importantly, the new rooms will be able to better handle technology, especially the boom in laparoscopic surgery, Roth said.

Physicians, who perform about 4,800 surgeries a year at Trinity, will have one additional surgery room as a result of the project, said Bobette Shay, director of surgical services. And because each room will be larger, scheduling will be less complex, she said. Limited types of cases are now performed in Trinity’s smaller operating rooms.

The expansion will also provide additional storage for new equipment, she added. Surgery will continue through construction.

Ann McGlynn can be contacted at (563) 383-2336 or amcglynn@qctimes.com.