March 8, 2012

ST. LOUIS - A new Barnes-Jewish Hospital facility opening on the Washington University Medical Center campus will provide an upgraded environment with improved access to services for thousands of St. Louisans who have difficulty affording or accessing healthcare.

The 12-story Barnes-Jewish Center for Outpatient Health will open on the northeast corner of Euclid and Forest Park Avenues in mid-March. The center, built specifically to help Barnes-Jewish fulfill its mission of providing exceptional care to every patient, will consolidate and upgrade five clinics currently located in an older building within the medical center. The clinics include:

• Primary Care Medicine Clinic

• OB/GYN Clinic

• Psychiatry Clinic

• Surgical and Wound Care Clinic

• Specialty Care Clinic (Dermatology, Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT), Neurology, Neurosurgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Urology)

“By consolidating the outpatient areas into one building, we are improving the patient experience for the patients who come to our clinics for care,” says Richard Liekweg, Barnes-Jewish Hospital president. “This new, patient-centered environment, will provide access to the latest medical treatments that were just not available in the outdated space.”

Patients at the Barnes-Jewish Center for Outpatient Health will have easy access to a full range of medical specialties and ancillary services, such as radiology and labs, located on three floors in the state-of-the art building.

New medical services to be provided at the center include hyperbaric oxygen therapy, gynecological procedures such as LEEP (loop electrosurgical excision procedure) and diagnostic hysteroscopy; prostate biopsies, and nerve and muscle biopsies.

“Because all of the clinics will be better integrated with more uniform processes, such as registration and appointment scheduling, patients will experience more timely communication among providers and better coordination of cross-disciplinary care,” says John Lynch, MD, Barnes-Jewish Hospital chief medical officer.

The first clinic will open in the new location on March 12, with all of the clinics transferring to the new facility by March 26.

Many patients seen in these clinics have limited access to health care due to economic circumstances. The majority of patients seen at the clinics meet the requirements for Medicaid assistance and staff work with patients to help them apply for coverage if they are eligible. With the closing of public hospitals over the years, the Barnes-Jewish clinics have become the safety net for many of these patients with more than 90,000 annual patient visits.

In addition, Barnes-Jewish operates the clinics to help fulfill its mission to provide advanced, specialized training to resident physicians and fellows, who have received their medical degree and are completing their training. The clinics serve as a true-life learning environment for resident physicians, under the supervision of attending Washington University School of Medicine faculty.

The 322,381-square-foot building will also house BJC HealthCare’s administrative offices, as well administrative staff for Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children’s Hospitals and the Siteman Cancer Center. Negotiations are underway for a tenant to occupy retail space on the center’s first floor.

The building will be connected via enclosed walkways to the Barnes-Jewish Center for Advanced Medicine and the Forest Park/Laclede parking garage.

The building also makes extensive use of “green” technology, such as solar panels to power parts of the building. The solar panels are capable of producing 22 kilowatts of electricity, enough energy during peak production to provide lighting for one floor of the building. The panels are linked into the building’s electrical grid to support overall electrical demands. One of those demands includes charging stations in the Forest Park/Laclede garage that will support up six plug-in electric vehicles.

Various sustainability initiatives including reducing construction waste, optimizing energy performance, reducing the urban heat island effect, using recycled materials, reducing domestic water use, using locally manufactured materials and embracing community connectivity will help Barnes-Jewish Hospital pursue Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for the building by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Barnes-Jewish Hospital is 1,288 bed teaching hospital affiliated with Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, MO. The hospital has a 1,763 member medical staff with many recognized as "Best Doctors in America." Barnes-Jewish is a member of BJC HealthCare, which provides a full range of health care services through its 13 hospitals and more than 100 health care sites in Missouri and Illinois. Barnes-Jewish Hospital is also consistently ranked as one of America’s “Best Hospitals” by U.S.News & World Report.

Contact:
Jason Merrill
314-286-0302
[email protected]