$57-million investment represents largest expansion in hospital’s history.

More than 40 years ago, community leaders had a dream of combining existing health care services into one state-of-the-art medical center. This vision was shared

by a group of determined individuals as they surveyed a tobacco field off of a dirt road in Rocky Mount. That dirt road would eventually become Winstead Avenue, and the dream would materialize and thrive as Nash General Hospital.

Four decades later, Nash Health Care continues to build upon the same promise made by those community leaders: to provide superior quality health care locally, so patients do not have to leave their hometown, their families, and their loved ones to receive innovative and technologically advanced treatments.

Now, the story of Nash Health Care continues with another expansion.

Nash Health Care recently broke ground on a new Emergency Department and heart center that will transform the hospital campus, representing the largest expansion since the hospital was built in 1971. The $57 million project is scheduled for completion in December 2013.

“This is an important and historic day. Today the story of our growth has another chapter. For our neighbors, for our children, and for all of us here today, this is a historic occasion, ” said Vincent C. Andracchio II, chairman of the Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners, emphasizing the importance of the community leaders who enabled the vision of Nash General Hospital to become a reality. 

This same determination and innovation paved the way for Nash Health Care to be one of the leaders in health care: Nash General Hospital was the first hospital in North Carolina to feature all-private rooms, and Nash Day Hospital was the first freestanding hospital in North Carolina designed for outpatient surgery, he said.

The building expansion will feature a total of three new floors. The new Emergency Department will be located on the ground floor, and the Nash Heart Center will occupy the second and third floors. The Emergency Department will have a separate entrance and treatment area for pediatric patients and  will be able to accommodate 90,000 patients a year. For comparison, the previous Emergency Care Center was
built to accommodate 40,000 patients a year, but actually treats an estimated 65,000 patients a year. The new Emergency Department will have a total of 54 treatment areas, as compared to 34 in the current Emergency Care Center

“We celebrate today as an investment in our patients; we think our patients deserve the very best,” said Larry Chewning, president and CEO of Nash Health Care, who thanked everyone who made this expansion possible. 

The architect for the project is Wilkerson Associates Architects. The builder is Rodgers Builders. The facility is scheduled for completion in December 2013.

“We are proud to be here in Nash County, said Steve Lawler, president of Vidant Health. “We are proud to be a part of this project to work together for the betterment of the community, allowing patients to receive care as close to home as possible. “

Twenty percent of the patients at Nash General Hospital’s Emergency Care Center are under the age of 17 – nearly double the amount of pediatric patients in other North Carolina emergency rooms. At Nash, this twenty percent equates to about 13,000 children a year. The Nash Health Care Foundation has been instrumental in raising funding and community awareness for creating a Pediatric Emergency Care Center.

“We would like to thank each one of you. The Foundation exists to promote the health of our community.  We are very thankful to be able to be here today,” said Norma Turnage, chairman of the Nash Health Care Foundation.

Vincent C. Andracchio II, chairman of the Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners, welcomes everyone to the groundbreaking event. Beside him is one of the shovels used in the initial groundbreaking for Nash General Hospital in 1968.

Members of the Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners pose with hospital officials at the recent groundbreaking. Pictured are, from left, Vincent C. Andracchio II, chairman of the Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners; Steve Lawler, president of Vidant Health; Rosa Brodie, secretary of the Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners; Dr. David Minor; Kay Mitchell and Jim Lilley of the Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners;  Leorita Hankerson Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners; Carl Daughtry, treasurer of the Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners; Norma Turnage, chairman of the Nash Health Care Foundation; Dr. Michael Crawford, Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners, Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners; Larry Chewning, president and CEO of Nash Health Care; Dr. David Varma, medical director of the Nash Heart Center;  Dr. Timothy Smith, Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners; Michael Bryant, Nash Health Care Board of Commissioners; and Don Raper.