New Tacoma rehab medical center moving forward

TACOMA, Wash. — Things are about to change this year in Tacoma’s acute care medical community.

Last summer, CHI Franciscan Health and Kindred Healthcare broke ground in Tacoma on a rehabilitation hospital at 815 S. Vassault St., the former site of the Afifi Shriners group hall.

The $25 million inpatient hospital should start seeing patients in late spring or early summer.

The 60-bed rehabilitation center will treat those recovering from an acute injury or illness, with specialized treatment programs for stroke, brain injury, neurological conditions, trauma, spinal cord injury, amputation and orthopedic injury, according to CHI Franciscan Health.

The plan is for the facility to replace the rehabilitation department at St. Joseph Medical Center, which is to wind down operations in late May, based on a state notice issued Tuesday.

The move will affect 71 employees, according to the notice from the state Department of Employment Security.

“The staff there have the opportunity to move to the new hospital or elsewhere in the CHI Franciscan system,” Cary Evans, vice president of communications and government affairs, said in a statement sent to The News Tribune on Tuesday.

Scroll down to continue reading

More news from KIRO 7

• Who is Mark Anthony Conditt, 23-year-old suspected Austin bomber?
• Burglars say shop owner tortured them, made them strip naked after break-in
• Alleged ICE mistake in deportation order could keep Marysville mom here
• Seattle Mayor outlines plan to reduce gun violence
• Man facing child porn charges after 'gingerbread house' found in Snoqualmie forest

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE NEWS APP

“There are currently 808 open positions within CHI Franciscan,” Evans said, adding that severance packages will be available to eligible employees who do not want to continue with the system.

St. Joseph Medical Center saw more than 600 patients in its inpatient rehabilitation unit in 2016, according to CHI Franciscan. Of those patients, 455 were over 60.

“Patients recovering from a stroke or other traumas that require rehabilitation care need time to heal and regain strength and mobility,” Anne McBride, president of CHI Franciscan Health Post-Acute Care Services, said last year.

“A state-of-the-art hospital built to suit the specific needs of post-acute care patients will provide us the resources we need to improve and speed their recoveries. We are excited to be able to reach more patients and serve them better with this new facility.”

Click here to read the full story on the Tacoma News Tribune.

Tacoma News Tribune