GHS Breaks Ground on New Medical Office Building
Granville Health System (GHS) recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new medical office building that will be built on the health system’s main campus.
The new building will become the home of Granville Primary Care, Oxford. Construction is expected to be completed next summer.
“The new medical office building provides an excellent platform to increase patient access to care,” said Cristina R. Carroll, Chief Operating Officer. “That means good things for the community; more providers, more patient visits and a reduction of wait time to see a doctor.”
In a recent report, the North Carolina Office of Rural Health identifies Granville County’s population as an underserved Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA). With the addition of new pediatric and primary care providers, the ability to support this growth within the current organizational footprint is challenging.
In addition to the shortage of health care providers in the area, outpatient volumes are projected to grow by 7% over the next three years. Additional providers must be recruited in order to meet the needs of the county and surrounding areas.
The new medical office building that will house primary care services increases the total number of primary care examination rooms to 27, which allows for nine primary care and pediatric providers to work collaboratively and simultaneously. There will also be a dedicated digital x-ray room to support the functions of the practice.
“The Granville Health System Board of Trustees and leadership will continue to engage in systematic, long-range planning so we can meet the future health care needs of the areas we serve”, said CEO John F. Snow. “Access to primary care is vital to the health of our community and GHS is assuring that we will be able to continue delivering the highest quality care in the area.”
Part of the funding for the new facility comes from the Golden LEAF Foundation’s Community-Based Grantsmaking Initiative. Granville Health System was awarded a grant of $500,000 for this project. The money will be evenly divided between construction costs and diagnostic imaging equipment costs.
“Golden LEAF supports healthcare infrastructure as an economic driver in rural communities,” said Dan Gerlach, Golden LEAF President. “We are proud to partner with Granville Health System to grow the number of health care professionals to serve the people in Oxford and beyond.”
