Mercy begins construction of $110M heart center

Mercy Springfield Communities tomorrow is scheduled to begin construction on a $110 million cardiovascular center dubbed Mercy Heart Hospital Springfield.

The project would renovate about 135,000 square feet on the west side of Mercy Hospital Springfield at 1235 E. Cherokee St. Mercy spokeswoman Sonya Kullmann said a new entrance would be created for the facility, and the hospital’s cafeteria and kitchen would be moved and expanded.

Kullmann said the new center’s goal is to improve patient access to the hospital’s cardiovascular services and cardiovascular and vascular surgery operations by consolidating them into one area.

“Right now, if you need to the (cardiac catheterization) lab, you’re going to the hospital. If you’re going to a checkup, you’re going to see a cardiologist in their clinic,” Kullmann said. “This way you will have one destination.”

The general contractor for the remodel is St. Louis-based McCarthy Building Cos. Inc., with architecture work by Bates & Associates Inc. Construction is scheduled to wrap in fall 2020, according to a hospital news release.

“The technology that enables us to care for these patients has come so far,” Mercy Vice President of Cardiovascular Services and cardiologist Dr. David Cochran said in the release. “We’ve been at the leading edge by participating in clinical trails and offering the latest advances.

“Now it’s time to reconfigure our space so we can get those treatments to our patients in the most efficient way possible.”

Locally, Mercy Springfield Communities comprises an 866-bed referral center, orthopedic hospital, rehab facility, children’s hospital and three regional hospitals in Lebanon, Aurora and Cassville. The company ranked No. 1 on Springfield Business Journal’s 2015 list of the area’s largest hospitals with 10,123 employees in a 50-mile radius around Springfield.