News

Orthopedic Healthcare Northwest Breaks Ground for Center Devoted to Integrated Musculoskeletal Care

Author: Slocum Center
Date: 07/10/2006

Contact: John Bauman, 868-3225
Liz Cawood, 484-7052

Environmental Health Is Key Component of New Building

EUGENE, Ore., July 10, 2006 - "Patients prefer to access care in one convenient location," said Dr. Thomas K. Wuest, Orthopedic Healthcare Northwest's president. "As we break ground today, we look forward to integrating services related to musculoskeletal care in The Slocum Center for Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. Patients' response to our announcement last year has reinforced our decision to provide multi-disciplinary orthopedic care in one place."

The 80,000 square foot medical building sits adjacent to Coburg Rd., Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and Centennial Loop. The four-story, brick and glass building - expected to be complete by late 2007 - will include offices for physicians specializing in advanced fracture care, orthopedic trauma, adult reconstruction, hand surgery, food & ankle surgery, sports medicine, physical medicine & rehabilitation, and podiatry. Related health professions with offices in the building will include: physical and occupational therapists, certified athletic trainers, acupuncturists, and massage therapists. These ancillary services will also be offered: therapy center with a hydrotherapy pool, outpatient surgery, diagnostic imaging, durable medical equipment, and pharmacy.

The Center will also house the Slocum Foundation, which focuses on orthopedic research and education to support improved patient care. "We'll have the space to increase our public education efforts through the Foundation to help people better manage their own health," Wuest said. "Our education services for the healthcare community will also be expanded, and we'll strengthen our research activities."

"Physicians focus on health, so it's natural for us to protect and enhance our community's environmental health in the construction and operation of The Slocum Center," Wuest said. "It is our intent to achieve LEED Silver Certification. To that end we have begun by recycling as much of the demolished buildings as possible, at least 85 percent."

"The project's ambitious goals include an extraordinary commitment to energy efficiency and sustainability that extends from building form and orientation on the site to the selection of environmentally-friendly building materials and high-performance mechanical systems," said Miguel Burbano, AIA, senior vice president of operations at The Neenan Company, architects and builders for the project.

Using outcome-based design, the building optimizes natural light for higher quality indoor lighting and to reduce electricity consumption. The building will use mercury-free HVAC and lighting as well as windpower from EWEB. Overall, the demand for electricity is to be reduced by a third from a standard clinical building.

Slocum Center has been designed to minimize the use of natural resources and draw on rapidly renewable resources while meeting or exceeding all conventional building performance criteria," Burbano indicated. "We'll use recycled building materials, certified wood products, and alternatives to brominated fire retardants. A significant effort was undertaken to find substitute materials for PVC. Bio-swales and native landscaping will compliment the LEED design criteria and minimize water usage."

Wuest indicated that OHN has outgrown its facilities in Springfield and Eugene. "A primary goal for a new location was convenience," Wuest continued. "We looked for a site that would best serve the entire Eugene/Springfield community. This central location is easily accessible and gives our patients a full array of options for treatment."

"Redevelopment in an urban environment offers certain challenges," Wuest said. "Yet, we felt that the opportunity to create a landmark building at one of Eugene's key entrances more than outweighed the ease of developing on the suburban fringe."

The building is named in honor of Dr. Donald B. Slocum, a founder of Orthopedic Healthcare Northwest. "Dr. Slocum focused on one goal: improving outcomes for all patients. He believed collaboration between sub-specialist orthopedic surgeons and other medical providers would lead to better treatment of bone, joint, soft tissue and related disorders," Dr. Thomas K. Wuest, Orthopedic Healthcare's president, said. "He would approve of this new facility, which provides multi-disciplinary care in one place."

"McKay Investment Company is delighted to be part of providing an attractive, landmark building on this site," said Steve Korth, director of real estate and development for McKay Investment Co, the property's owners. "That's exactly what Orthopedic Healthcare wants to build. We're in a win-win situation for each of us and for the greater community."

The Neenan Company, a specialized healthcare architecture firm based in Fort Collins, Colo., is responsible for the design and construction of the facility. Several local firms are contributing to the project.

Solarc Architecture + Engineering has been the electrical and mechanical engineers and the LEED consultants. TBG Architects have assisted with the planning process. Pinnacle III Consulting is consulting on the ambulatory surgery center portion of the building, Hohbach-Lewin, Inc. is the structural engineer, and CMG&S is the landscape architect.

Orthopedic Healthcare Northwest includes some of Oregon's best-known orthopedic surgeons and physicians, and a team of more than 100 specialized medical staff members. The organization expects to add up to an additional 50 physicians and employees over the next five years as demand for orthopedic services continues to grow.