• Current ED is operating 200% above capacity
• Expansion limitations within existing hospital

The new hospital will expand the emergency department to serve our rapidly growing community and will provide specialty care to patients from Moses Lake, Warden, and Ruff, as well as an expanded emergency department (ED).

Since 2010, Moses Lake’s population has grown 80% faster than Grant County and 85% faster than Washington State overall. Samaritan Hospital’s Emergency Department (ED) has 9 beds and had 24,310 annual visits in 2022. The American College of Emergency Physicians recommends that an ED with 20,000 visits annually should have a minimum of 15 beds. Presently, Samaritan’s ED is operating at 200% above the recommended capacity.

“Getting patients seen as quickly as possible, especially the sickest patients as quickly as possible and either getting them back home where they can recover or upstairs in the hospital where they can begin their treatment is important to us,” said Dr. Matthew Lockwood, Medical Director of Samaritan Healthcare’s Emergency Department. “The faster we can do that, the better we can take care of patients, and the more patients we can see on a daily basis.”

“A future community hospital shows that Samaritan is committed to the health of our residents,” said Rebecca Suarez, RN, Director of Emergency Services at Samaritan Healthcare. “The ED is overcrowded more often than not and the lack of space is the biggest barrier. On days where there are a lot of patients and the ED is overcrowded it is more complicated, but we rise to the challenge. Staff are more efficient when given adequate work space, patients are placed in appropriate care areas, such as flex care, trauma room, or a main ED bed, plus the patient experience is greatly improved.”

• Surgery is operating at max capacity
• Larger surgical rooms needed for advanced surgical technology (robotic-assisted equipment)
• Seven new specialty care services since 2016

The OR/Surgery department—a medical specialty that was requested by the community in our 2016 and 2018 surveys—will be expanded and made more operationally efficient in the future community hospital. The new layout has 5 operating rooms (with one area for expansion when needed), 15 Pre/Post rooms, plus an additional 9 PACUs (Post-Anesthesia Care Unit). After receiving anesthesia for a surgery or procedure, a patient is moved to the PACU to recover and wake up.

With our Samaritan and other community-based surgeons on our medical staff and the various surgical specialties that they represent—ENT, general surgery, gastroenterology, OB/GYN, ophthalmology, orthopaedics, pain management, podiatry, and urology—a significant amount of equipment and supplies requires proper storage and space. As space requirements for equipment and robotic technology are growing, increased OR size is also greatly needed.

In the existing OR, only one surgery room has the space needed to use robotic-assisted technology. This creates a scheduling conflict when general and orthopedic surgeons both need the same room for their equipment. In the new hospital, all the surgery rooms will have the space for robotic-assisted technology, thus providing more capacity.

“In the current hospital, two of the four existing operating rooms are very small,” said M. Lyndon Dieter, MD, Perioperative Medical Director/Anesthesiologist of Samaritan Healthcare Hospital. “Even in the larger operating rooms, space is at a premium. There needs to be sufficient space for personnel, plus room to maneuver the patient.”

• 985 babies delivered annually
• Labor, delivery, recovery all in one patient room
• Advanced nursery allows at-risk mothers and babies to stay close to home in the early weeks of life
• Tele-Pediatric ICU and Tele-Neonatal ICU provide increased care for higher-risk patients

The need to update the Mother and Baby Unit is also being addressed within the design of the future community hospital by constructing a regional LDRP (labor, delivery, recovery, postpartum) with the capability of serving more than 1,000 annual births. Each room is LDRP, which means when a mother checks into a room, her entire birthing experience until she checks out will be within her own private birthing room. There will also be an advanced nursery with a higher level of care for higher-risk births. This allows mothers and babies who need this care to stay close to home and their families in the early weeks of life.

• Private patient rooms with space for family to stay overnight
• Advanced technology in patient room for improved care
• Expansion capable by 10 additional hospital rooms as community grows, meeting the needs of your family through your healthcare experience

Surgery and the Emergency Department are all adding rooms. The patient/hospital rooms and ICU rooms will be flexible and adaptable to meet the needs of your family throughout your healthcare experience. Patient rooms and ICU rooms are all on the same floor and have the same technology. When needed, an ICU room can become a hospital room and a hospital room can become an ICU room.

Private patient rooms have space for family to stay overnight when conditions allow, and will have advanced technology within the room for improved care. With today’s technology, more surgical patients are going home the same day (outpatient). If needed, there will also be space for expanding with 10 additional patient rooms in the new hospital as the community grows

• Our growing community: population, businesses, hospital use
• Community care needs (surveys)
• Current hospital facility limitations

In responses to two surveys in 2016 and 2018, Grant County residents identified the top four needs to improve the community healthcare experience: more primary care and specialty providers, recruit and retain the best possible staff, modern and up-to-date facilities, and reduce the need to travel outside the area for healthcare.

Since the last major addition/renovation to Samaritan Hospital was more than 20 years ago, the delivery of healthcare has changed—including requiring more room for patients, equipment for medical/technology needs, supplies, and more.

“While the existing hospital is clean, visually appealing, and appears functional, the mechanical components of the facility—boilers, chillers, HVAC, generators, etc., are at their maximum capacity,” said Theresa Sullivan, CEO, Samaritan Healthcare. “The mechanical aspects are at the end of useful life, with no capacity for expansion. New equipment is a responsible investment in our operational efficiency. It would allow our future community hospital to operate at a reduced cost when compared to our current hospital, as well as taking into consideration the costs for energy, technology, and infrastructure.”

With modern infrastructure—from mechanical and energy-efficient windows to up-to-date construction materials and design—the community’s future hospital is designed to meet the current and future needs of our community.