Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Opinion
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • Data Center
    • Data Center Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Providers
December 17, 2015 12:00 AM

UChicago moves plans for South Side trauma center to its own campus

Adam Rubenfire
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    University of Chicago Medical Center
    A new adult Level 1 trauma center at the University of Chicago medical campus will be wrapped into previously announced construction of a new and expanded emergency department, as well as a “substantial increase” in the amount of inpatient beds.

    University of Chicago Medicine will establish a Level 1 adult trauma center at its Hyde Park campus on Chicago's South Side, scrapping plans to develop one in collaboration with Holy Cross Hospital and giving community activists exactly what they demanded from the start.

    The new trauma center is part of a major investment UChicago says it will make in its surrounding community, including the previously announced construction of a new and expanded emergency department, as well as a “substantial increase” in the amount of inpatient beds to support the new trauma and emergency-care operations and specialty care.

    The trauma center will be the first on Chicago's South Side since 1991, when Michael Reese Hospital, located about four miles north of UChicago, ended its trauma program. Michael Reese closed in 2008.

    Community activists have long complained that the academic medical center disregards the needs of the many lower-income neighborhoods around it while positioning itself as an elite tertiary- and quaternary-care provider competing with the likes of Northwestern Medicine's flagship hospital in downtown Chicago.

    The hospital said it made the change to "ensure Chicago's South Side community has access to comprehensive adult trauma care." Officials aren't yet able to provide a dollar figure for the investment, but said they would know more once they file for state approval in the first quarter.

    UChicago announced in September that it would work with Chicago-based Sinai Health System to develop a Level 1 trauma center at Holy Cross, despite calls by activists for a facility on the UChicago campus. The Trauma Care Coalition called the Holy Cross project a victory but said it still wouldn't serve large swaths of the South Side that could be served by a facility on the university campus.

    “From the very beginning, what has mattered most is making sure that patients have access to the highest level of trauma care where the needs are great,” Karen Teitelbaum, CEO of Sinai Health System, said in a statement. She said the system would offer support and expertise from its own experiences with the Level 1 trauma center at Mount Sinai Hospital on the city's West Side.

    When asked whether Sinai was disappointed that it has lost an opportunity to operate a second Level 1 center, a system spokeswoman said, “We are pleased that there will be Level 1 care for the community.”

    Sharon O'Keefe, president of University of Chicago Medicine, said clinicians and leaders from Sinai and UChicago concluded that, with the planned construction of a new emergency room and growing specialty care, there was a significant opportunity to integrate services between an adult trauma center and the hospital's existing Level 1 pediatric trauma program at Comer Children's Hospital, along with its Burn and Complex Wound Center. There were clinical synergies between departments that treat all ages like anesthesiology and radiology, as well as staff coverage from nursing and technical employees to make the move worth it, she said.

    “(We decided) this could be a very viable if not the best solution for adult trauma,” O'Keefe said, noting that the health system was already going to have to broaden its inpatient capacity with existing plans.

    Activists did not respond to requests for comment on the decision, but Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel issued a statement applauding the university's plan to “strengthen access to care the community needs most.”

    “Having access to a Level 1 adult trauma center, alongside increased access to emergency and specialty care, will strengthen our entire network of care on the South Side,” Emanuel said.

    O'Keefe said UChicago has “never disagreed with the activists or any of the community stakeholders that the South Side of Chicago is underserved.” She said today's decision was incredibly well-received by the community, activists and government leaders.

    The system will now file a certificate-of-need application with the state of Illinois to expand its bed count and emergency department, in addition to seeking approval for Level 1 adult trauma center status. O'Keefe said the CON will likely be filed early next year, which would position the hospital for a hearing in the second quarter. Construction, once approval is gained, is estimated to take 18 to 24 months and could end in early 2018 if everything goes smoothly.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    20160830_Mike_Pykosz_mm0146(1).jpg
    Q&A: Oak Street Health CEO on growth plans after CVS Health deal
    Rapid growth predicted for hospital-at-home market
    Rapid growth predicted for hospital-at-home market
    Most Popular
    1
    More healthcare organizations at risk of credit default, Moody's says
    2
    Centene fills out senior executive team with new president, COO
    3
    SCAN, CareOregon plan to merge into the HealthRight Group
    4
    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan unveils big push that lets physicians take on risk, reap rewards
    5
    Bright Health weighs reverse stock split as delisting looms
    Sponsored Content
    Modern Healthcare A.M. Newsletter: Sign up to receive a comprehensive weekday morning newsletter designed for busy healthcare executives who need the latest and most important healthcare news and analysis.
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Opinion
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Data Center
      • Data Center Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing