NRMC opens its doors to public

Sunday will mark the third open house, this one for the public, that Nevada Regional Medical Center will host this month. A private open house was conducted Tuesday with employees, retired employees, and members of the auxiliary and another scheduled for this evening will be by invitation only for architects, past and present board members and the city council members, hospital foundation members and a cross- section of the community. The open house will start with a short formal presentation at one p.m. then the public will be free to follow strategically placed arrows on the floor to each department. Employees and department heads will be in each area to provide information and respond to questions from the public. The open houses come as the construction project nears its end with a short list of items to finish before the hospital can admit patients into the new sections. Robert Ohlen, CEO, said the timeline remains the same with ICU moving to its new location July 10, GI Lab and Ambulatory Care July 12, Obstetrics July 17 and Medical/Surgical moving July 24. Once the change-over has occurred and the various departments have vacated their old space it will be time for a make-over. Programs and departments that have been located in houses outside of the hospital because of lack of space; Human Resources, Marketing, and Community Relations, among others, will move into new quarters in the vacated departments. The old lobby and gift shop will be turned into offices. Once the MRI trailer moves to its new location the area will be returned to its old appearance with green space around the re-erected flagpole. The trailer will now be on the north side of the new addition with a corridor running between Ambulatory Care and the Emergency Room providing access. Ohlen pointed out that the new addition was still being worked on and some items won't be finished in time for the Sunday open house. "There are a few things that we need to finish up on. Some countertops are not installed and there are some items on a punch list that need to be completed. There may be a little bit of dust here and there and some window cleaning that needs to be done," Ohlen said.