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Planned $7.6 million building, to be completed in a year, continues northern Summit County health-care boom
By Cheryl Powell
Beacon Journal medical writer
Published on Thursday, Apr 24, 2008
Akron General Medical Center is expanding its outpatient center in Stow and considering adding inpatient services at its Summit County northern-tier unit.
President and Chief Executive Alan J. Bleyer said Wednesday that construction of a $7.6 million addition to the Akron General Health and Wellness Center-North off state Route 8 near Steels Corners Road will begin this summer.
When it's completed by next spring, the addition will transform the Health and Wellness Center — North into ''an integrated medical campus,'' Bleyer said.
The newest portion of the facility will house cardiac testing and rehabilitation, neurology, a vision center, physician offices, pulmonary testing, a restaurant, a pharmacy and
other yet-to-be-determined stores.
The four-story, 42,000-square-foot addition also will enlarge the laboratory and sports performance center that formed the original building, which opened last summer.
The original $32 million facility already has a medically based fitness center called LifeStyles, as well as a 24-hour emergency department to serve patients from Stow, Hudson, Cuyahoga Falls, Twinsburg and neighboring communities.
''It's a comprehensive facility,'' Bleyer said. '' . . . Just think about having a satellite emergency department and then down the hallway you have a full complement of cardio and pulmonary testing.''
In the future, the facility could be expanded to include inpatient care, Bleyer said. Akron General expects to decide within the next three months whether to add such service in Stow and, if so, exactly how many beds and what types of care would be provided, Bleyer said.
At the same time, cross-town rival Summa Health System is moving forward with plans to build a full-service 100-bed hospital in partnership with area doctors somewhere off state Route 8 in northern Summit County.
A steering committee is continuing to explore sites, Summa spokesman Mike Bernstein said Wednesday.
Akron General is considering options that would bring inpatient services at a lower cost than building a full-service hospital, Bleyer said. He estimated new hospitals typically cost about $1 million per bed, or about $100 million for a 100-bed facility.
''Looking toward the future and the challenges that businesses face in paying for health care, we need to find a way of reducing the cost of inpatient services,'' Bleyer said. ''That's the reason why we are currently reviewing the capabilities of inpatient services.''
He said the Stow facility ''is a very convenient, accessible location that is low-cost compared to building a brand-new hospital.''
In recent years, hospital systems in Akron and Cleveland increasingly have been trying to stake claim to Summit County's growing northern section.
Last year, the Cleveland Clinic announced plans to build a $71.5 million, outpatient medical center and 24-hour emergency department on state Route 91 near Interstate 480 in Twinsburg.
University Hospitals in Cleveland recently opened its UH Twinsburg Health Center, with outpatient diagnostic, primary-care and speciality services and an urgent-care center.
Summa beefed up its presence in northern Summit County in November, when it opened a medically based fitness center in Hudson.
In addition, Summa and Akron Children's Hospital share an outpatient medical center that's attached to the Summa Wellness Institute in Hudson. The Children's portion includes an after-hours emergency department.
All along, Akron General planned to add a second phase to its Stow location, Bleyer said. Plans already were submitted and approved by Stow officials when the first phase was proposed, he said.
The hospital is financing the expansion through cash and investments, and is talking to area doctors about joint venture opportunities in the facility, he said.
The initial phase of the Stow facility has been extremely successful, Bleyer said, with nearly 4,000 memberships to LifeStyles sold in the first 10 months and emergency-department visits exceeding initial estimates.
''We felt the timing was right,'' he said.
Cheryl Powell can be reached at 330-996-3902 or chpowell@thebeaconjournal.com.
Akron General Medical Center is expanding its outpatient center in Stow and considering adding inpatient services at its Summit County northern-tier unit.
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