St. Vincent Charity Hospital to Break Ground For Expanded Emergency Department

Event to be held Friday, October 5, at 2:00 p.m. on Hospital’s Front Lawn

Cleveland, OH – September 21, 2007 – St. Vincent Charity Hospital will join with elected officials, dignitaries, supporters and staff members on Friday, October 5, at 2:00 p.m. to break ground for the long-anticipated expansion of its full-service Medical and Psychiatric Emergency Department. A capital campaign, led by Philip L. Rice, CEO, National City Bank, has helped to raise more than $8 million in funds for the project.

 “This is an exciting milestone in the continuing legacy of St. Vincent Charity Hospital,” said Jeffrey S. Jeney, president and CEO, St. Vincent Charity Hospital. “We are grateful to our many friends and supporters for their commitment to ensuring the hospital continues to serve a broad spectrum of needs, today and in the future.”

The expansion of St. Vincent Charity Hospital’s Emergency Department is a critical development for the City of Cleveland, which relies on this “downtown hospital” to be ready for emergencies, large and small.

“St. Vincent Charity Hospital serves as a vital link to quality, Catholic healthcare for individuals who live and work in downtown Cleveland, as well as the many visitors who travel to the City each year,” said Jeney.

Originally constructed in the 1960s and updated in the 1970s, St. Vincent Charity Hospital’s Emergency Department was built to accommodate patient volume and medical standards prevalent at that time. “Since then, healthcare has dramatically evolved in terms of treatment modalities, best practices and quality standards,” said Jeff Jeney, president and CEO.  “Not only must we handle heart attacks, strokes and other sudden illness and injuries, but we must also be ready for the unexpected in today’s uncertain times.”

The increasing number of patients being diverted from the city’s emergency rooms also underscores the critical shortage that exists in emergency care. “We serve thousands of people who are uninsured, while also bridging the medical services gap created by the closure of several area hospitals in the past seven years,” he said. “Despite these challenges, we must ensure that quality emergency care is accessible to our residents at all times. This can only be achieved through the enhancement and expansion of services and capabilities.

With construction expected to begin this fall, the hospital will renovate the Emergency Department within its existing footprint and relocate its Psychiatric Emergency Department (PED) to a newly renovated, adjacent space. The project also includes investments in technology, training and other programmatic enhancements.

Additionally, there will be programmatic enhancements to the hospital’s PED. Distinguished as one of only two of its kind in Ohio and one of only six in the country, the PED provides a safety net for nearly 4,000 Northeast Ohioans in need of emergency behavioral healthcare services each year. “Individuals in need of psychiatric care had many more options when the PED was established more than 20 years ago,” said Jeney. “We must maintain a safe and respectful environment to accommodate patient volume growth.”

About St. Vincent Charity Hospital

St. Vincent Charity Hospital is a 480-bed, full-service inpatient and outpatient healthcare center dedicated to its mission of providing quality, Catholic healthcare. The Hospital has served the Greater Cleveland community for more than 141 years. St. Vincent Charity Hospital is jointly owned by the Sisters of Charity Health System and University Hospitals. For more information, visit www.stvincentcharity.com.