CREIGHTON – Avera Creighton Hospital announced on July 22 an addition-and-renovation project that will provide more patient care space and services.
The approximately $5 million project is expected to be completed in the winter of 2025-26. It will include remodeling about 7,500 square feet of the healthcare facility, while adding more than 2,000 square feet of new space.
The project marks a new chapter for the critical access hospital, which is in its seventh decade of serving the people of Knox County.
“We are excited to get this project under way so we can better serve our patients and make workplace improvements for our staff,” Hospital CEO Theresa Guenther said. “We’ll be updating the inpatient care area, as well as expanding the emergency department, lab, physical medicine and cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation areas. This will help us upgrade the patient experience, meet changing federal regulations and provide our patients, visitors and staff with more safety and security.”
Among the improvements included in the project are: - An additional exam room in the emergency department.
- A decontamination room adjacent to the emergency department.
- Larger doors and larger bathrooms with individual showers in hospital inpatient rooms, including two rooms that can accommodate bariatric patients.
- Additional lab space to make way for equipment updates.
- Security upgrades to the pharmacy.
- More open, modern space for physical medicine and cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation.
“Some of these updates to infrastructure will ensure our facilities are capable of serving patients well into the future,” said Dr. Ron Morse, the chief medical officer for Avera Creighton. “Others will improve patient and clinician movement throughout the hospital. Ultimately, our goal is to equip staff with an environment that promotes healing, along with technology and resources to improve patient outcomes and save lives.”
In addition to these upgrades, the hospital will continue to invest in telemedicine services, which provide access to specialists who can offer their expertise during medical situations that require more support.
“Avera Creighton is committed to continuing to explore innovative ways to keep Knox County residents healthy,” Guenther said. “Whether you need a checkup, therapy services or lifesaving emergency care, we have the professional caregivers, knowledge and technology to serve you.
“Covering five states in the Great Plains, Avera knows rural healthcare and this project will help us continue with Avera Creighton Hospital’s more than 70-year commitment to providing services to this region,” she said.
Russ Diedrichsen, the chairman of the Avera Creighton Hospital Advisory Council, commended Avera for its ongoing commitment to the hospital and community.
“Since Avera Sacred Heart purchased the hospital in 2011, it has worked with the providers and caregivers here to make sure they have modern tools and technology – including some of the finest telemedicine services in the world – to serve local patients and residents,” Diedrichsen said. “This project is yet another huge investment in our community and our health. It is a day to celebrate.”
This vision for the future of the Creighton hospital is firmly rooted in the community’s vision for the medical facility, said Doug Ekeren, the president and CEO of the Yankton, S.D.-based Avera Sacred Heart Hospital region, which includes Avera Creighton.
“The people of Creighton and surrounding communities have told us the delivery of health care close to home is important to you,” Ekeren said. “I see this as a collaboration between two communities – the Knox County community and the Avera community.”
Avera Health is an integrated system with more than 1,200 employed providers offering more than 60 medical specialties from audiology to wound care.
“We have home care, long-term care, research, wellness offerings, insurance – all connected to each other, all working collaboratively,” Ekeren said. “With Avera Creighton Hospital in Creighton, it is a doorway to the larger network of Avera services and experts who give support and resources to our local providers and employees, as well as patients and residents in our clinic, hospital and skilled nursing community.”
This project will be supported by philanthropic contributions through the Avera Foundation. Opportunities for the community to make additional charitable contributions toward the completion of the renovations or new equipment for Avera Creighton are still available by contacting [email protected] for more information.
