Saint Thomas Health Receives Approval for 72 Inpatient Bed Expansion and Surgery Center in Rutherford County
Today, the State of Tennessee Health Services and Development Agency (HSDA) approved Saint Thomas Health’s Certificate of Need applications to expand in Rutherford County and Sparta. Saint Thomas Health is part of Ascension, the nation’s largest Catholic and nonprofit health system.
The Certificate of Need approval allows for vertical expansion at Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital, which will include the addition of 72 medical beds, increasing the capacity of the hospital from 286 beds to 358 beds. The expansion is intended to improve patient flow and also provides additional capacity for outpatient services, at an estimated project cost of more than $47 million. The project is part of a larger expansion plan at Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital in an effort to meet the current and long-term demands of the growing Rutherford County community. As a part of this expansion plan, a 25-bed Clinical Decision Unit is currently under construction adjacent to the Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital Emergency Department.
Additionally in Rutherford County, Saint Thomas Health received approval to begin construction of an ambulatory surgical treatment center (ASTC) in a joint-venture partnership with USPI, the nation’s leading surgery center provider. The planned surgery center will be a 13,000-square-foot multi-specialty facility with two operating rooms and one procedure room located on New Salem Road, at an estimated cost of more than $16 million.
“We are pleased to expand our acute care facility at Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital in response to the rapid growth of Rutherford County and the surrounding areas,” said Gordon Ferguson, President and CEO, Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital. “Expansions in this community demonstrate our commitment to provide access to personalized, compassionate care, and our dedication to those we serve.”
“Our Mission at Saint Thomas Health is to provide all persons with the right care at the right time in the right place, especially those that are vulnerable,” said Karen Springer, President and CEO of Saint Thomas Health and Senior Vice President of Ascension Healthcare, a division of Ascension. “Enhanced access points in Rutherford County allow us to continue investing in the community and their diverse healthcare needs.”
These planned developments in Rutherford County are part of Saint Thomas Health’s broader strategy to meet the needs of patients where they live and work. This lower-cost, high-quality care strategy aims to keep populations healthy and out of the hospital when possible by offering everything from primary care to outpatient surgeries. The expanded inpatient capacity responds to the inevitable care needs of steady community growth and an aging population.
Saint Thomas Health also received approval to expand the existing geriatric inpatient psychiatric unit at Saint Thomas Highlands Hospital in Sparta, adding four beds to the unit for a total of 14 beds. This expansion is meant to meet the behavioral health needs of a growing senior population and eliminate current capacity constraints at Saint Thomas Highlands Hospital.
