More than two years after MyMichigan Medical Center in Alma broke ground on a $34 million expansion, the finished state-of-the-art facilities are up and running.
“We are excited to bring to a close this construction project, which combines the latest surgical technology, as well as increased comfort and privacy for patients and their families,” says Marita Hattem-Schiffman, who is president of MyMichigan Medical Centers in Alma, Clare and Mt. Pleasant.
The project broke ground in the summer of 2022, and the project was completed in December. The expansion will enhance patient care at the hospital in the community of about 10,000 residents in central Michigan through the latest technology and modernized facilities.
What’s happening: The newly opened 51,200-square-foot surgical suite renovation and expansion represents the second phase of the expansion at MyMichigan Medical Center Alma, a 107-bed teaching hospital in Alma. The final phase included creation of 18 private pre-operative and recovery rooms, a seven-bed Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) with advanced monitoring systems, and a day surgery area.
An earlier phase of the project, completed in March, included four new, larger operating rooms and two new procedure rooms to accommodate the latest innovative technology, such as ceiling-mounted booms to allow better positioning with ultra-efficient LED lights. Upgraded video monitors provide a view of the operating table and show surgical images, X-rays and patient vital signs. In addition, the rooms have been equipped to add remote collaboration, consulting and teaching.
“The most advanced surgical services will continue to be available to all central Michigan communities through this significant investment,” Hattem-Schiffman says.
A new Sterile Processing Department was also part of the renovation project; it places staff near the operating rooms for efficient decontamination, assembly and sterile processing, sterile storage, and distribution of items used during surgery.
Efficient patient access was the focus of the hospital’s new main entrance, which opened in May to assure better access to outpatient services and testing, surgery or procedures.
About the hospital: The Alma hospital is the largest employer in Gratiot County, home to about 41,000 residents. The hospital has served central Michigan since 1955 and has been accredited by The Joint Commission. Here are some facts about MyMichigan Medical Center in Alma:
- 107 beds all with private rooms
- More than 1,000 employees, volunteers, health care providers and other personnel, half of whom live in Gratiot County
- Serves as a teaching facility with a family medicine residency training program, medical student clinical rotations, nursing student rotations and state-of-the-art Simulation Center, New Cardiac Cath Lab, Maternity Center and MRI rooms completed in 2019 and 2020.
- Offers online scheduling for Bone Densitometry (DEXA), CT Scan, General X-Ray, Lab, Mammography, MRI, Primary Care, Pulmonary Function Testing (PFT), select Ultrasound Studies, Urgent Care, In-person and Virtual Care
- Its laboratory and Imaging services are available 24/7
- Affiliated with MyMichigan Health and the University of Michigan Health
- U.S. News & World Report has named MyMichigan Medical Center Alma as a 2025 High Performing hospital for Maternity Care, the highest award a hospital can earn as part of U.S. News’ Best Hospitals for Maternity Care annual study.
- Second consecutive year of maintaining an “A” safety grade from The Leapfrog Group.
- Received Michigan’s Quality Improvement Organization (MPRO) 2019 Governor’s Award of Excellence for outstanding achievement in Effective Reporting and Measurement in Outpatient Quality Reporting Acute Care Hospitals
Why it matters: Access to high quality health care is an essential component of a healthy community, Hattem-Schiffman says. “In rural areas, we tend to underestimate how excellent healthcare can be and how important it is to the local economy,” she says. “ MyMichigan Medical Center Alma serves a large, multi-county area of Michigan. It’s imperative that we sustain excellent, contemporary care and to ensure we can evolve as healthcare evolves into the future.” In addition, she notes, rural hospitals are frequently the largest employer and therefore a significant contributor to the local economy.
Who paid for the recent expansion: The surgical suites and pre and post-operative areas were made possible through donations to the MyMichigan Health Foundation which raised $1.2 million from community donations; the remainder was funded by MyMichigan Health.
What’s next: A community open house to showcase the expansion project is planned for spring and innovations are expected to continue. “This new construction positions us to evolve well into the future with technological changes in health care,” Hattem-Schiffman says.
For more information on the overall project, visit
www.mymichigan.org/AlmaOR.
The new hospital entrance is open from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Guests and visitors should use the Hospital/Visitor Entrance to visit inpatients or to access the Highlander Boutique, Highland Café or meeting rooms. Any after-hour services can be accessed through the Emergency Department.
Rosemary Parker has worked as a writer and editor for more than 40 years. She is a regular contributor to Rural Innovation Exchange and other Issue Media Group publications.
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