STANTON - It may be hard for some to believe but Martin County’s new hospital clinic is already in need of more rooms.
The Martin County Hospital District opened the doors to the new facilities located on Interstate 20 in May of 2012.
Since then, the district has hired five new doctors - Robin Alverado, Calvin Cargill, Melencio Juan, Megan Chandler, Linda Wiebe - that are having to share 14 exam rooms. And with a new surgeon set to join the staff shortly, the already crunched space is about to get tighter.
Hospital board members approved the addition of just over 20,000 square feet to be added to the clinic which should add close to 14 more exam rooms.
Construction is expected to start in late March to early April of 2020 and should be completed in 12 months. Once the new addition is completed the old clinic will be remodeled to match the new construction’s specifications.
Also on the hospital’s agenda, it the construction of a new nursing home and new assisted living center.
With the closing of Martin County’s only nursing home a few months ago, residents are forces to take their loves ones across county lines and into larger cities like Midland, Odessa or Big Spring.
The new nursing home will house 30 beds and the assisted living center will have 20 beds.
“We have always planned on having a complete heath care complex in Martin County and this brings us that much closer,” stated Martin County Hospital CEO Paul McKinney. “We chose the 50 beds because we thought we could keep them full. We didn’t want to overbuild.”
The two new facilities could bring another 20 to 25 jobs to Martin County.
Construction will not begin until the clinic and remodel are finished.
Unlike the new hospital which was built with bond money, the new clinic as well as the nursing home and assisted living center will be paid for with hospital funds.
“The hospital’s current financial situation is in great shape,” stated McKinney. “We just finished paying off part of the bond that was charging eight percent and we’re getting ready to renegotiate the other two interest rates.”
Renegotiation are expected to lower the current rates considerably which will allow for a quicker payoff.
Architect renderings and opening the job for bids are expected to begin in the coming weeks.