East Alabama Health’s $43 million ICU expansion progressing rapidly

OPELIKA, Ala. (WRBL) -The construction of East Alabama Health’s $43 million ICU expansion is moving swiftly, with significant progress being made toward enhancing critical care services for the community. The new space is designed to improve the care experience for families in medical crises, aiming to meet the needs of a rapidly growing region.

Inside East Alabama Medical Center’s (EAMC) ICU, immediate care matters. The expansion project, focused on increasing the hospital’s capacity to care for critically ill patients, reflects this urgency. The multi-million dollar expansion will incorporate 30 additional critical care beds, with the potential to add 30 more in the future.

Jay Walters, Executive Director of Facilities for East Alabama Health, emphasized the community’s growing needs and the hospital’s commitment to meeting them.

“Within the next week, you’ll see the deck going up,” said Walters. “We are a growing community, and we don’t want anybody to wait for a bed. This addition will help provide care more quickly, get patients in a bed quickly, and start getting them the care they need.”

The expansion covers a total of 67,395 square feet. The third floor will house mechanical systems, the fourth floor is a shell for future expansion, and the fifth floor will be dedicated to the additional ICU beds.

“We are excited to have these beds available to us sometime in October 2025,” Walters explained. “The construction will continue through October, and right now, we are on schedule. After construction, there will be a period where we outfit the space with all the necessary furniture and medical equipment, and then we will occupy it as soon as we can.”

The construction is strategically isolated, with the majority of work taking place on the fifth floor. This setup creates a two-floor buffer between the construction zone and patient rooms, minimizing noise and vibration for patients and staff.

“The design reflects our experiences during COVID. We’ve incorporated spaces specifically for patients who may be infectious, so we are prepared if needed,” Walters noted. “We hope we won’t have to use it, but it’s there if we do.”

The design of the new ICU space is both functional and visually appealing, with large windows to allow natural light for patients, staff, and visitors.

“We’ve known we had the capability to expand this portion of our hospital for some time, and our leadership decided now was the time with the growth in our community,” Walters said.

EAMC serves an 11-county area, and with the region’s rapid growth, the expansion comes at a crucial time. Alongside the ICU project, a freestanding ER in Auburn has recently opened, and a freestanding mental health facility is currently under construction.

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