Mercy hospital leaders, co-workers, Sisters of Mercy, and board members were on hand April 10 to watch the final beam go into place for an expanded emergency room and intensive care unit in Fort Smith.
Under the guidance of McCarthy Building Companies, the final beam was raised as onlookers watched from below. Ahead of the topping out ceremony, Mercy Fort Smith co-workers were given the opportunity to sign the final beam, which now sits atop what will be the main entrance at the expanded facility. The beam was adorned with an evergreen tree, a tradition for topping-out ceremonies dating back to ancient times.
The $186 million project includes expanding the emergency department from 29 to 50 rooms and increasing capacity in the intensive care unit from 38 to 64 in a design that provides better workflow and flexibility. The new ER will allow for about 25,000 more patient visits per year and include special considerations for infectious disease and behavioral health patients. An additional 140 parking spaces will accommodate the expansion, with parking closer to the new ER entrance.
Ryan Gehrig, president of Mercy Arkansas Communities, recognized co-workers and community members in attendance, including Sister Judith Keith, former president and CEO of Mercy Fort Smith, who led the efforts to bring the hospital to its current location in 1974.
“The ER and ICU you designed 50 years ago has served us incredibly well,” Gehrig told Sister Judith. “We’re building upon the vision you had to move this entire campus here. She was a visionary, because look at what this community has done since moving here.”
The increase in ICU beds will more than double the number of rooms capable of supporting ventilators. The building’s automation system is being designed to allow floors or pods to be turned into isolation areas as needed. It includes a building automation system that will, at the push of a button, use 100% outside air in “pandemic” mode on a floor-by-floor basis.
Mercy broke ground on the project in February 2022 and anticipates its completion in spring 2025.