Lake Chelan hospital board members, staff travel to west side

CHELAN – Lake Chelan Community Hospital  and Clinics (LCCHC) board members and staff traveled to Elma, Wash. to tour the new rural hospital which was built using USDA funds, and Seattle, to hold an introductory meeting at the office of Architect Collins Woerman, Wednesday, Nov. 15, for a preliminary meeting with board members, Bouten Construction and Architect Collins Woerman according to LCCHC CEO Kevin Abel.
The first of many meetings to come served as an introductory meeting between the hospital board members and staff, contractor and architect. During the meeting, all initial surveys and information were distributed and reviewed, including environmental and traffic surveys.
One other important topic discussed between those involved in the design and construction of the new hospital was the master facilities strategic plan. This plan anticipates the volumes in various areas within the care facility such as the ER rooms, lab and radiology visits, and the number of patient rooms needed between now and the year 2030. Once established, this plan will advise what is needed, and ensure that the design is within the parameters that LCCHC had set forth and will be compared to the initial schematic design developed in 2016 by the healthcare facilities planning and development department.
Permitting requirements through the City of Chelan and Department of Health Construction Review Services, among others, were also covered as well as a brief discussion on the budget for the build.
“Our budget is still looking reasonable,” explained Abel in an interview, ‘‘and it will be the next step, but our overall budget is still within reasonable expectations.”
Part of the funding toward the construction of the new building is $2 million that Lake Chelan Health and Wellness Foundation is in the process of raising through various fundraisers, sponsorships, and activities.
The current hospital’s construction began in the late 1960s and was completed in 1972. While the design and instrumental electrical components were a success at the time, as time has gone by the cost to repair, upgrade, and expand as needed due to increased visits has far surpassed the value of the property itself.
Abel explained that currently, there are a lot of the infrastructure issues, including the plumbing, the electric/wiring, and elevator issues to only name a few, “there’s a significant cost to having to upgrade all of that as well,” he said.
During a hospital board meeting in 2014, Dr. Charles Waszkewitz was quoted stating his opinion on the current facility, “For ‘72, it was probably a good hospital,” Waszkewitz said, “that is not the case anymore.” Other issues Waszkewitz vocalized with the new facility included the confidentiality issues that double occupancy rooms raise, forcing a transfer to Wenatchee because of those particular privacy rules and the lack of space for functionality in the lab and surgical areas.
Ground breaking for construction of the building is anticipated for either September 2018 or March 2019, depending on design and construction elements, and weather, however it is still too early in the development stage to say definitely when ground will be broke. Grand opening is still anticipated for mid-year of 2020, though.
For more information on donating toward the build of Chelan Valley’s newest care facility, contact Lake Chelan Health and Wellness Foundation at www.lchealthwellness.com, or mail your check donation to: Lake Chelan Health Wellness Foundation, P.O. Box 1911, Chelan, WA 98816.