Alexian opens new patient tower

Leading a trend sweeping through suburban hospitals, Alexian Brothers Medical Center today dedicated an expansion that will convert the hospital to all private rooms.

The new East Tower on the Elk Grove Village campus contains 108 private rooms, but will keep total capacity at 387 beds, because the hospital's existing rooms will be converted from two-patient to single-patient rooms.

The new five-story facility is not open yet, but officials expect to begin shifting beds into the new building June 7 once they undergo an inspection by the Illinois Department of Public Health.

It will likely take about three months to get all operations running in the new wing.

The addition will contain 36 surgical beds, 36 telemetry beds for monitoring cardiac recovery and 36 intensive care beds.

There will also be a "diagnostic mall" on the ground floor that will include all outpatient diagnostic services, including MRI and CT scans, mammograms, nuclear medicine and X-rays.

The project, including conversion of current rooms, cost about $120 million.

Cardinal Francis George blessed the building by sprinkling water through its halls. He rode in a golf cart to minimize his walking after suffering a hip fracture two years ago.

At a dedication in the hospital chapel, George noted that in Italy hospital rooms are large to accommodate lots of people, with the thought being if you leave someone alone they'll die.

Privacy is important in the U.S., he said, but he reminded caregivers to not let patients feel they're on their own.

"Relationships are more important than individuals," he said. "No one is ever alone."

The addition's darkened exterior glass nestles snugly behind the hospital's existing buildings, between the main hospital and the Eberle Medical Building on Biesterfield Road, east of the North-South Tollway (I-355).

A virtual tour is available at alexianbrothershealth.org.