Atrium Health Floyd and the construction team had a mini celebration Wednesday as Chattooga County’s freestanding emergency department located next to Walmart on U.S. 27 is nearing completion.
The “stitching party” recognizes when all the exterior components of the facility are in place and sealed. When finished, the $18.4 million FSED will serve residents in Chattooga County and portions of Walker County and northeast Alabama. The facility will include six treatment rooms along with onsite laboratory and imaging services, including x-ray and a computed tomography (CT) scanner.
The 10,884-square-foot facility will also be home to a new mobile mammography unit to ensure more women have convenient access to lifesaving breast cancer screenings. A helipad will also be located on-site, providing quick access to Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center, the only Level II trauma center in northwest Georgia.
“There is no doubt this facility will save lives,” said Atrium Health Floyd President Kurt Stuenkel. “Some Chattooga County patients currently have to travel an hour or more get to an emergency department. The opening of this facility will officially start a new era of quality health care in Chattooga County, linking close-to-home emergency care to the region’s only Level II Trauma Center.”
Stuenkel said the FSED is expected to be operational this fall.
Adam Wheeler, senior project manager with Brasfield & Gorrie called Wednesday’s event a “stitching party” instead of topping off event that sometimes occurs when construction projects are completed. That’s because the modules for the facility are stitched together after arriving onsite.
“We are thankful for the opportunity to build this project,” Wheeler said.
Stuenkel credited Chattooga County Commissioner Blake Elsberry for helping make the project a reality.
“Blake said his county needs this,” Stuenkel said. “It really grew out of his concern for people in this region,” Stuenkel added.
It will be the first freestanding emergency department to be built from the ground up in the state of Georgia. It is unique for one to be built in a rural area. The FSED is expected to employ an estimated 44 people once open this fall.
The facility features modules pre-assembled by Bessemer, Alabama, based BLOX. Those modules began arriving onsite in Chattooga County during the first week of May.
In September 2022, Atrium Health Floyd EMS became the official ambulance service provider in Chattooga County, positioning five ambulances across the county with 35 teammates. The service represents more than a $1 million investment in new vehicles and equipment.
About Atrium Health Floyd
The Atrium Health Floyd family of health care services is a leading medical provider and economic force in northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama. Atrium Health Floyd is part of Charlotte, North Carolina-based Advocate Health, the fifth-largest nonprofit health system in the United States, created from the combination of Atrium Health and Advocate Aurora Health. Atrium Health Floyd employs more than 3,500 teammates who provide care in over 40 medical specialties at three hospitals: Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center – a 304-bed full-service, acute care hospital and regional referral center in Rome, Georgia; Atrium Health Floyd Polk Medical Center in Cedartown, Georgia; and Atrium Health Floyd Cherokee Medical Center in Centre, Alabama; as well as Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center Behavioral Health – a freestanding 53-bed behavioral health facility in Rome – and also primary care and urgent care network locations throughout northwest Georgia and northeast Alabama.
About Advocate Health
Advocate Health is the third-largest nonprofit integrated health system in the United States – created from the combination of Advocate Aurora Health and Atrium Health. Providing care under the names Advocate Health Care in Illinois, Atrium Health in the Carolinas, Georgia and Alabama, and Aurora Health Care in Wisconsin, Advocate Health is a national leader in clinical innovation, health outcomes, consumer experience and value-based care, with Wake Forest University School of Medicine serving as the academic core of the enterprise. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Advocate Health serves nearly 6 million patients and is engaged in hundreds of clinical trials and research studies. It is nationally recognized for its expertise in cardiology, neurosciences, oncology, pediatrics and rehabilitation, as well as organ transplants, burn treatments and specialized musculoskeletal programs. Advocate Health employs nearly 150,000 team members across 67 hospitals and over 1,000 care locations and offers one of the nation’s largest graduate medical education programs with over 2,000 residents and fellows across more than 200 programs. Committed to equitable care for all, Advocate Health provides nearly $5 billion in annual community benefits.