Mercy opens $32M emergency department

Mercy Springfield Communities has opened its new $32 million emergency department at the Queen City's border with Ozark.

The 17,256-square-foot facility – located at 3050 E. River Bluff Drive in Ozark and attached to Mercy’s orthopedic hospital along U.S. Highway 65 – opens to patients today. A ribbon-cutting and blessing ceremony was held Nov. 11, and a news media embargo was lifted today to time with the patient opening.

Steve Mackin, president and CEO of Chesterfield-based Mercy, was among speakers at the ceremony. He thanked Mercy Springfield Communities President John Myers and his team "for the vision and the wisdom to move south and create this important location" that he said would cut down the time needed for patients to access care.

"It's an important expansion of our service," Mackin said, noting emergency departments are "a stop in our health care continuum" where "some of the most consequential decisions by families will have to be made."

Mackin added, "We've done a lot of openings over the last year, but EDs are always particularly important."

Myers said the emergency department was built in response to the needs of the Springfield area.

"It represents our ongoing commitment to meeting the needs of a growing community and ensuring that patients and families in south Springfield and beyond have access to the best emergency care close to home, where every second counts," he said. "Today isn't just the opening of a new building, it's a milestone in Mercy's legacy of caring for this community and a promise that we'll continue to grow, innovate and respond to the needs of those we serve."

St. Louis-based McCarthy Building Cos. Inc. served as general contractor for the emergency department designed by project architect REES Associates Inc., of Oklahoma City, and landscape architect Olsson Inc., according to past reporting. 

At the new facility, Mercy estimates it will have 16,500 patient visits annually, with an average of 1,500 visits per room. The facility has 11 beds, including seven standard treatment rooms, a trauma room and an isolation room, as well as dedicated imaging, a lab, pharmacy, public safety and other resources.

"This emergency department was designed with our patients and caregivers in mind," said Dr. Mark Griesemer, emergency room physician leader for Mercy Springfield Communities, at the ceremony. "From the layout of each room to the technology behind the scenes, every element supports accurate, efficient and compassionate care."