DANVERS - Beverly Hospital's future in Danvers is almost here.
Its $30 million medical and day surgery center is in the final stages of construction. The new building off Route 62 is three stories, 99,000 square feet and "shaped like a wedding cake," said Bud Holden, Northeast Hospitals off-site facilities director.
Leading a tour of the building yesterday, Holden was charged with the can't-wait excitement of a Patriots fan in late August. "This building was designed with the latest and greatest in technological ability," he said. "It's state of the art."
Northeast Health System is aiming to move from the Hunt Center, its old home in Danvers, to its new one on the former Danvers State property by early November. Beverly Hospital at Danvers Medical and Day Surgery Center, as it's officially known, is scheduled to open its doors on Nov. 14.
Multiple specialties will be housed under one roof. There will be a breast health center, a cardiovascular center, orthopedic center, spine center, sports medicine and rehabilitation center, and pediatricians' offices. Four operating rooms will accommodate various day surgeries.
Yesterday, the building's interior was still a hard-hat only zone. Clumps of thick blue wiring hung from the ceiling. Floors needed to be carpeted or tiled. The dust generated by heavy construction covered storage cabinets and cherry wood countertops. But after 15 months of work, these are signs of a nearing finish line.
The new building will provide patients quicker and more efficient care, Holden said. Someone can undergo a CAT scan on one floor and soon after hear a diagnosis from his doctor on another floor.
The interaction will take place on the same day and in the same building, said Heather Jones, media relations manager for Northeast. "It's instantaneous," she said.
"It's one-stop shopping," Holden said.
There will be no film to develop. Every image will be digital and uploaded to a computer. Doctors will be able to consult with colleagues in Boston, simultaneously viewing the same image, Holden said.
The medical center will also have a CT scanner that will provide a full body scan in 15 seconds. And the building will have wireless Internet service available to anyone, including patients' friends and family members, with a laptop computer.
Its $30 million medical and day surgery center is in the final stages of construction. The new building off Route 62 is three stories, 99,000 square feet and "shaped like a wedding cake," said Bud Holden, Northeast Hospitals off-site facilities director.
Leading a tour of the building yesterday, Holden was charged with the can't-wait excitement of a Patriots fan in late August. "This building was designed with the latest and greatest in technological ability," he said. "It's state of the art."
Northeast Health System is aiming to move from the Hunt Center, its old home in Danvers, to its new one on the former Danvers State property by early November. Beverly Hospital at Danvers Medical and Day Surgery Center, as it's officially known, is scheduled to open its doors on Nov. 14.
Multiple specialties will be housed under one roof. There will be a breast health center, a cardiovascular center, orthopedic center, spine center, sports medicine and rehabilitation center, and pediatricians' offices. Four operating rooms will accommodate various day surgeries.
Yesterday, the building's interior was still a hard-hat only zone. Clumps of thick blue wiring hung from the ceiling. Floors needed to be carpeted or tiled. The dust generated by heavy construction covered storage cabinets and cherry wood countertops. But after 15 months of work, these are signs of a nearing finish line.
The new building will provide patients quicker and more efficient care, Holden said. Someone can undergo a CAT scan on one floor and soon after hear a diagnosis from his doctor on another floor.
The interaction will take place on the same day and in the same building, said Heather Jones, media relations manager for Northeast. "It's instantaneous," she said.
"It's one-stop shopping," Holden said.
There will be no film to develop. Every image will be digital and uploaded to a computer. Doctors will be able to consult with colleagues in Boston, simultaneously viewing the same image, Holden said.
The medical center will also have a CT scanner that will provide a full body scan in 15 seconds. And the building will have wireless Internet service available to anyone, including patients' friends and family members, with a laptop computer.
Beverly Hospital's new facility is nearing completion, while work on North Shore Medical Center's and Massachusetts General Hospital's $110 million office building and ambulatory care center is just underway across town on Sylvan Street.
Holden is confident Beverly Hospital will thrive in Danvers, despite the competition.
"We know we have competition, but our competition is going to be no better equipped than we are," he said. "We're here. We've got our base, and we're going to expand our base."
The Hunt Center, which Beverly Hospital has operated from since 1990, is up for sale. Danvers Town Manager Wayne Marquis is grateful that it doesn't signal the end of the hospital's presence in town.
"We're certainly looking forward to the (November) opening," he said. "It's the rebirth and expansion of what we know as the Hunt Center, and it ensures (the hospital's) prominence in the community for decades to come. It's a good thing for the town of Danvers in every respect."
Holden hopes Beverly Hospital can capitalize on its history in Danvers and the patients who come with it.
"We're giving them a new home," he said.
By the Numbers:
Cost: $30 million
Square feet: 99,000
Floors: 3
Operating Rooms: 4
CafÉs: 1
Parking spaces: 400
Employees: 175-200
Beverly Hospital at Danvers Medical and Day Surgery Center
Opening Day: Nov. 14
Hours: Still to be determined
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