MultiCare to open $25 million neighborhood emergency department in Union Gap

UNION GAP, Wash. — MultiCare Health System will break ground this fall on a $25 million neighborhood emergency department in Union Gap to ease the pressure on its Yakima hospital.

"We see about 87,000 visits annually, which puts us as one of the busiest ERs in not only the state, but in the nation," Dr. Tanny Davenport said. "Seeing that many patients in about 24 exam rooms, it's very challenging for us to see people quickly and efficiently."

Davenport said that's why MultiCare plans to build an off-campus emergency department to help deal with that demand, something they've done successfully at their other hospitals.

"What we see is that people, naturally with lower acuity, will pick the off-campus emergency rooms," Davenport said. "What that means is the number of people who need to actually stay in the hospital at off-campus emergency departments is oftentimes a lot less."

The proposed location for the new, 10,000 square-foot facility is an empty lot sitting near corner of Goodman Road and West Valley Mall Boulevard in Union Gap, across from Costco.

"When we looked geographically at the need, based on who’s at our emergency department, this really made the most sense," Davenport said. "It has ready access to the freeway so that patients from the Lower Valley, patients from Ellensburg, can hit the highway coming to Union Gap."

The new facility will feature 10 exam rooms for a full-service emergency department that's open 24/7 and will include on-site radiology services such as X-ray, ultrasound and CT scans and will also offer laboratory services.

"For a large majority of the patients who go to our emergency department, it’s going to have everything they need," Davenport said. "In the rare instance that they may need to stay or be hospitalized, we’ll make sure they get to the hospital in a safe way."

The organization will also be hiring on new employees to staff the facility, including nurses and board-certified emergency physicians. According to MultiCare officials, neighborhood emergency departments typically employe about 50 to 60 people.

Davenport said they plan to break ground on the project this fall, with the goal of opening the facility by the end of 2025.

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