Mount Nittany Health’s Board of Directors has approved plans for a 10-floor, 300,000-square-foot addition to the medical center in College Township, the Centre County-based health system announced on Thursday.
The $350 million “state-of-the-art” tower will have 168 private patient rooms, outpatient services, amenities for hospital staff and patients and a new parking deck, according to a news release.
Construction is expected to begin next summer, with an expected occupancy date of December 2026. It will be completed in phases to mitigate disruptions.
Mount Nittany Health first revealed plans for the addition in September 2021 and design development began in August.
The new facility will provide “an advanced patient-centered experience and serve an expanding number of Mount Nittany Health providers,” according to the health system.
In combination with existing private rooms at the hospital, the new rooms will allow all patients to have a private room at the hospital, which is licensed for 260 beds. The tower is designed to bring natural light into the rooms and provide scenic views.
The addition also will include “telemetry capabilities, outpatient clinics, point-of-care registration, enhanced dining and food service preparation, outdoor space for patients, visitors and staff, a modernized data center, a central utility plant, a 171-space parking deck and walkway and improved storage” according to the release.
“The new tower is a big, game-changing step to improve the environment for patients and staff,” Mount Nittany Health President and CEO Kathleen Rhine said in a statement. “By investing in the new tower, we are creating a better environment for the medical staff and nursing professionals caring for our community members, and enhancing the inpatient experience with spacious private rooms, a therapeutic environment, convenient access to inpatient care services and advanced technology.”
About 40 Mount Nittany Health physicians and staff members were involved in the initial planning team, which assessed patient rooms, staff amenities, kitchen and dining areas, multiple clinics and therapy units, telemetry monitoring and storage. They said they are looking forward to the benefits that the floor design and technological capabilities will bring for patients and staff.
“The indoor/outdoor spaces will give our teams a place to get the much-deserved relaxation time needed to recharge,” Amber Shaw, RN/ICU/PCU manager, said in a statement.
Mount Nittany Health officials anticipate the new tower also will aid in recruitment and retention of employees and increase pandemic flexibility and capacity.
Design firm Stantec is architect for the tower project and Whiting Turner will be construction manager.
The patient tower addition is Mount Nittany Health’s second recent major construction project as part of an ongoing plans for expansion and renovations at the medical center and outpatient locations.
In March, Patton Township’s Board of Supervisors approved land development plans for construction of Mount Nittany’s new four-story outpatient medical center, which will be the first building in the long-planned Toftrees West development. That building is expected to open in late 2023.
Other initiatives in Mount Nittany Health’s facilities investment include the renovation of the imaging department at the medical center to create a newly designed diagnostic pavilion on the main floor of the hospital and the addition of a new inpatient dialysis unit.
The Joseph V. and Suzanne P. Paterno Women and Children’s Services Unit women and children’s unit and the clinical laboratory also have undergone major expansions.
