By Lan Nguyen
Plans for a new building for the Health Sciences faculty of the University of Louisville have been approved.
U of L President Dr. James R. Ramsey has obtained a recommendation from the Board of Trustees for up to $10 million to be earmarked for the project.
“Many of [the faculty] are not just professors, but also doctors. This building will serve as the new office for faculty member’s private medical practices,” said Ellen de de Graffenreid, director of the Health Sciences Center Communication and Marketing.
Doctors would not only see their patients, but be able to conduct their clinical research in this new building as well.
“One of the primary focuses is positive patient experience,” said de Graffenreid.
Currently, faculty offices are spread out across various locations. Some doctors rent spaces in Kosair Children’s Hospital, Norton’s Hospital or from commercial developers.
“U of L does not own any of these spaces, so [they] aren’t ours to do [anything] with. [Therefore], when the leases end, doctors can easily leave in order to move into the new building,” said de Graffenreid.
The new structure will serve to unite many of the faculty’s offices together, and have primary and specialty care available at the same place.
De Graffenreid said the building will be located on the corner of Preston and Chestnut Streets and will be 180,000 square feet. One of its biggest features will be the electronic medical record system which furthers the goal of “positive patient experience.”
“Say I’m a patient, and I have diabetes. If my doctor refers me to a specialist, [like] an endocrinologist, I can not only walk down the hall in the same building to see the doctor, but the doctor can then look up my record using this system [as well],” said de Graffenreid.
This system makes the process of going from doctor to doctor easier, and keeps the patient from having to carry around a huge medical file or worry about information being lost when the file is transferred.
Granted, the patients’ permission will be asked before putting the information in the database. This system not only can send medical records, but images too, such as the results of X-rays.
“So patients don’t have to carry around a bulky folder with pictures and files,” said de Graffenreid. Furthermore, in this new facility diagnostic tests (i.e. blood drawing, MRIs) can be completed. “That way doctors don’t have to send a patient to the hospital to have these tests done,” said de Graffenreid.
De Graffenreid is not sure of the amount being allocated for this project yet. However, the project will definitely be going through.
With the construction of this building, U of L Health Care doctors will be able to work closer with one another, and patients will be provided with many conveniences that will serve to enhance their overall experience.
