On Friday April 5, 2013 at 10am, VA Butler Healthcare will hold the official Groundbreaking Ceremony for the new Health Care Center (HCC). Construction is expected to be completed in the summer of 2014, with activation in 2015.
“The Health Care Center is an exciting milestone, and one that preserves VA’s established presence as a valued asset for our Veterans in the Butler community conveniently located adjacent to the existing property,” said VA Butler Healthcare Director John Gennaro. “The new Health Care Center will allow VA to provide our Veterans with Personalized, Proactive, and Patient-driven care in a new state-of-the-art facility.”
The new 168,000 square foot, LEED certified three-story HCC will more efficiently provide VA Butler’s outpatient services. Services in the new HCC will include: primary care, specialty care, mental health, dental, diagnostic, laboratory, pathology, radiology, podiatry, optometry, pharmacy, physical rehabilitation, and women’s health. It will be fully equipped to continue as well as expand the technology used by VA to provide care. This includes telemedicine equipment for telehealth, clinical video telehealth, teledermatology, teleretinal exams, teleaudiology, enhanced physical therapy with hydrotherapy, and focus on Health promotion with a wellness center.
“The HCC will enhance and improve the outpatient health care environment for Veterans and their families and will provide new space for all outpatient services and support staff,” said Gennaro. “The new Health Care Center will have an efficient design that is Veteran-centric. Veterans will be easily able to navigate the HCC and all services will be provided on two floors.”
During the construction of the new HCC Veterans will continue to receive services without interruption at the current facility. The existing campus will remain in use by the VA once the HCC is complete. VA Butler completed construction on the new 56-bed Domiciliary in fall 2012, and is making significant progress toward the completion of the new 60-bed Community Living Center.
“These two projects in addition to the new Health Care Center will allow VA to continue providing excellent care to our nation’s Veterans in all new facilities,” said Gennaro.
The Butler Health Care Center received Congressional approval and was authorized as Public Law 111-82 on November 24, 2009 as a major lease. VA Butler Healthcare was selected for a Health Care Center primarily because of its mission as a large outpatient clinic.
In June 2012, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) selected the developer to build the new HCC on the 21-acre Deshon Woods property in Butler County. The contract was awarded to Westar Development Company in Aurora, Ohio. Westar Development Company has 50 years of experience as a real estate development and management company, including developing over four million square feet of properties for the Federal Government. VA will lease the facility from the Westar Development Company annually during a 20-year term once construction is complete.
VA Butler Healthcare, located in Butler County, Pennsylvania has been attending to Veteran’s total care since 1947. We are the health care choice for over 18,000 Veterans throughout Western Pennsylvania and parts of Ohio and are a member of VA Healthcare VISN 4 under the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. VA Butler Healthcare provides comprehensive Veteran care including primary, specialty and mental health care – as well as management of chronic conditions and social support services to our nation’s Veterans. We proudly serve America’s Veterans at our main campus as well as at our five Primary Care VA Outpatient Clinics in Armstrong, Southern Butler County (Cranberry Township), Clarion, Lawrence and Mercer Counties..
Throughout the year, our writers feature fresh, in-depth, and relevant information for our audience of 40,000+ healthcare leaders and professionals. As a healthcare business publication, we cover and cherish our relationship with the entire health care industry including administrators, nurses, physicians, physical therapists, pharmacists, and more. We cover a broad spectrum from hospitals to medical offices to outpatient services to eye surgery centers to university settings. We focus on rehabilitation, nursing homes, home care, hospice as well as men’s health, women’s heath, and pediatrics.