Facility Planning Part 1 Essay Example

Facility Planning Part 1 Essay Example Facility Planning Part 1 Essay Facility Planning Part 1 Essay Facility Planning Part 1 Facility Planning Part One Dwan Chatman HCS/446 July 26, 2011 Ruth Ann Vaughn Facility Planning Part One The United States is facing a crisis with the rise in health care cost and the aging population suffering from chronic and terminal illnesses. As a result, hospital administrators are left to seek out methods to address these patients’ needs. The hospitals are trying networking, patterning with new physicians, and building additional outpatient treatment facilities to address the needs of the community, and the demographic area. In this paper the subject is to explain the community and facility need for Penn Medicine Rittenhouse to develop a new outpatient therapy clinic. Additionally, this paper will describe the population the clinic will service and will conclude with a description of the facility. Facility Need Physicians and hospital administrators at the facility have begun to notice a rise in knee, spinal cord, and neurological conditions in the hospital (UPENN, 2011). They knew that many of their patients were either elderly or athletes who both disagree with long stays in a hospital. For the elderly patients, limited incomes were their primary reasons and the athletes simply do not have time to be confined to a hospital for rehabilitation. Many of them felt that having an outpatient rehabilitation and treatment center would benefit them in the long run. Penn Medicine conducted a study and found this information to be true. They in turn partnered with Good Shepherd Penn Partners and began developing a plan to combat these issues (UPENN, 2011). The partners wanted this facility to be close in destination and provide all of the services a fully functional in patient facility would have. When developing the plan for their facility they had to do a study on the population and demographics of the area surrounding the designated site in order to ensure the facility would meet the needs of the community. Type of Population The area surrounding the new facility is a historic area in the city of Philadelphia. William Penn designed Rittenhouse Square Park in the 17th century which is what made the area historic (Philadelphia Facts, 2011). Over the years the demographics changed as residents began to populate the area; it became known as a Victorian aristocratic neighborhood with townhouses. Around the 20th century, high rises were built to take the place of the town houses, high end shopping districts, and the best upscale restaurants were built to signify the expansion of the culture of its residents (Philadelphia Facts, 2011). This area has attracted a diverse group of residents from park goers; families with atlethtic children; punk rockers, and elderly people looking to finish their golden years in quality, this area is perfect for a new rehabilitation center. Located near Center City, this area can be accessed a number of ways from public transportation and is also accessible from interstates 76 and 676 (Philadelphia Facts, 2011). Additionally, there is also a bike lane which is another great reason for the location. Residents in this area prefer to bike ride because of traffic congestion and Limited Street parking adding another reason to this being a good location for the new facility. Placing the facility here was a strategic move on the part of Penn Medicines administration because patients’ can access the facility on lunch break or pretty much from anywhere within the city. Description of Facility Penn Medicine Rittenhouse was designed to assist the University of Pennsylvania Hospital in combating the growing sports and spinal cord injuries that require long and extensive treatments to correct. The facility is 12,000 square feet which is dedicated to the new Outpatient Therapy Clinic. The facility has specialty features for neurological conditions; sports/orthopedic injuries, and sports medicine injuries (UPENN, 2011). They offer three new services that were the driving force in the decision to open the facility. The new services housed in the facility are Comprehensive Brain Injury Program, Spinal Cord Injury Program, and a top notch Gait Lab. These services include pressure sensitive floors, computer analysis, and multiple video cameras to analyze patients’ movements and natural walking cycles (UPENN, 2011). The first floor of the facility houses Good Shepherd Penn Partners therapy and Fitness site, the facilities Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation administration offices, and space for patient care. The primary goal of this facility is to provide a continuum of care in one place. Patients receive inpatient and outpatient post acute care in one facility. This will make it easier for patients already mentally struggling with accepting their injury at least have a hassle free way to obtain care. In conclusion, Good Shepherd Penn Partners and Penn Medicine saw a need for a new facility in their community and acted accordingly. By determining the need for the facility; finding a suitable location to fit the targeted population, they were able to build a state-of-the-art modernized facility to combat all rehabilitation issues in one stop. The success of the facility will depend greatly on how well administrators developed, budgeted and executed their plan. References Philadelphia Facts. 2011. Retrieved July 19, 2011. From www. about. com/Philadelphia UPENN. Penn Medicine Rittenhouse. 2011. Retrieved July 19, 2011. From www. usphs. upenn. edu