Groundbreaking Held for North Oaks Medical Center Expansion

A groundbreaking ceremony took place this afternoon for the planned expansion of North Oaks Medical Center in Hammond.

The 5-story, 200,000-square-foot hospital addition has been designed by Washer Hill Lipscomb Cabaniss Architecture, LLC of Baton Rouge, also known as WHLC. It will be constructed by Hoar Construction, LLC of Birmingham, Ala. with Frank A. Anzalone General Contractors Inc. of Independence serving as subcontractor.

“We have outgrown the demand for our services and must continue to strategically build to meet the ever-changing needs of the communities we serve,” asserted North Oaks Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer Michele K. Sutton in her welcome of Tangipahoa Parish leaders, project partners and health system officials in attendance.

Scheduled for completion in the second quarter of 2012, the expansion will add 14 Operating Room Suites, 12 more outpatient surgery beds and 67 new, private inpatient rooms to the hospital. Sixteen of the new inpatient rooms will be used for critical care patients and 51 for medical/surgical and telemetry patients. Infrastructure enhancements, such as a new utility loop, central mechanical plant and helipad, and shelled space for future growth of the Emergency Department also are part of the project.

All told, the project will increase the hospital’s patient bed count to 326 and the private room ratio from 51 percent to 60 percent.

“These additional beds will expand the capabilities of our most needed services, including critical care, telemetry and surgery,” Sutton continued. “We are fortunate to have community members behind us who want to come here and don’t want to be transferred somewhere else. It is for them that we have planned this next chapter in our health system’s journey.”

North Oaks Board of Commissioners Chairman Guy Recotta Jr. concurred, “This is a tremendous milestone in the history of North Oaks. The Board is committed to seeing that the health care we provide continues to be strong in quality and that North Oaks continues to serve the communities’ needs.”

The brief program also included remarks from project partner WHLC President Russell Washer, who touted the North Oaks team’s vision in shaping the design of the expansion to make it functional and competitive for years to come. Hoar Construction’s Health Care Division Vice President Coker Barton Jr. also offered program remarks noting that the project will create and sustain 600 jobs while never losing sight of safety, budget, quality and schedule.

North Oaks President/Chief Executive Officer James E. Cathey Jr. concluded the program by stating, “This is a very exciting next chapter for North Oaks as we strive to keep pace with the growth that is taking place along the I-12 corridor. In partnership with our board, leadership, medical staff, employees, volunteers, architect and contractors, I truly believe we will succeed in creating something special for the people who live in this region.”

The total cost of the expansion project, including design, construction, furniture and fixture expenses, has been funded through a $99 million bond issuance.

North Oaks Health System is the largest community-based health care organization on the Northshore and has been serving the Florida Parishes for 50 years.

For More Information
• For a project fact sheet regarding the North Oaks Medical Center Expansion, click here or call North Oaks Marketing/Business Development at (985) 230-6647.

From left, groundbreaking participants include Robert Zabbia, Mayor of Ponchatoula and retired North Oaks Board of Commissioners member; Dr. Eleanor Dixon Wells, North Oaks Board of Commissioners member; Michael Watkins, North Oaks Vice President/Operations; Lionel Wells, Tangipahoa Parish Councilman; Dr. Michael Harlan, North Oaks Medical Center Chief of Staff; Dr. James Nelson, North Oaks Board of Commissioners member; Mayson Foster, Mayor of Hammond; James E. Cathey Jr., North Oaks President/Chief Executive Officer; A.J. Bodker, North Oaks Board of Commissioners Vice Chairman; Guy Recotta Jr., North Oaks Board of Commissioners Chairman; Doug Eckert, Hoar Construction Executive Vice President; Coker Barton Jr., Hoar Construction Health Care Division Vice President; Russell Washer, President of Washer, Hill, Lipscomb, Cabaniss Architecture, LLC; and Blake Daniels, North Oaks Board of Commissioners member.

The new hospital tower will adjoin the Signature Building and Office Plaza on the North Oaks Medical Center campus in Hammond.