Norman Regional plans for Southeast Norman facility opening this fall, topping out this week
May 28—Norman residents will have access to a new freestanding emergency room in a fast-developing part of the city as soon as this fall, Norman Regional leadership says.
Norman Regional Health System is planning and executing multiple expansion projects as part of its Inspire Health Initiative. The health system plans to open Norman Regional Nine — an emergency room that will also host primary care providers and specialists — in Southeast Norman this October, hospital leadership said.
The system will pass another major construction milestone this coming week as it finishes the steel structural elements of its Healthplex expansion.
NRHS will hold a "topping out" ceremony Tuesday to celebrate the placement of the last beam before construction workers wrap the building and work on internal elements.
The additions to the West Tecumseh Road Norman Healthplex include a new ambulatory care center, a new tower that will add bed capacity and a cancer care center with plans still in progress. NRHS plans to be done with the Healthplex projects by late 2023.
The Healthplex expansion will not necessarily provide brand-new resources — NRHS already has a cancer care center at its Porter complex, for instance — but will consolidate existing arms of the healthcare system, NRHS President and CEO Richie Splitt said. Surgery staff and services from Porter will move to the Healthplex.
"We do wonderful community cancer care, but you see your physician in one place, you get a fusion in another place, you get radiation in another, your inpatient stay is in another setting altogether, and it's really disconnected," Splitt said. "So we're bringing it all together, and we're going to do some really exciting things with cancer care."
Splitt said NRHS believes the expanded ambulatory care facility will, however, allow for NRHS to attract and complete more surgeries.
The Healthplex's layout is currently being reshuffled by construction, but Splitt said the updated facility will allow for greater ease of access to many resources. The ambulatory care center will have parking directly outside so patients are steps away from the front desk as soon as they park.
"They are not going to have to venture far to get a wide spectrum of care with this new design," said John Manfredo, NRHS' chief operating officer. "It's about convenience, for sure."
Manfredo said for now, NRHS is grateful for its patients' patience with the construction and disruption at the Healthplex.
NRHS is also planning significant projects at its Porter campus, which will eventually be home to the Senior Center, a Variety Care facility and a behavioral health center.
Splitt said community members and the NRHS team are excited to offer Norman Regional Nine's services in Southeast Norman, a fast-growing sector of the city. All the new Inspire Health facilities are being built with future expansion in mind, he said.
"Our hope is that we can spark the infrastructure and other development that can go along with access to care and a more vibrant part of our community," Splitt said.
Emma Keith is the editor of The Transcript, where she covers Norman Public Schools and the University of Oklahoma. Reach her at ekeith@normantranscript.com or at @emma_ckeith.
