Caregivers prepare for Lutheran Hospital opening on August 3

The new Intermountain Health Lutheran Hospital will open on Saturday, August 3.?Construction on the six-story replacement hospital started in 2021 and will provide a state-of-the-art care site in the West Denver suburbs.??

All patients will be moved in one day from the existing Lutheran Medical Center in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, to the new campus, three and a half miles away along I-70. Caregivers have contributed at each step of this process — providing input on the design, testing their workflows, and participating in mock moves. More than 175 volunteers will help create a smooth transition on opening day.?

"We offer excellent patient care services and quality of care found at Lutheran today and are excited to move into this new, beautiful space, which reflects our commitment to the well-being of our patients," said Andrea Burch, Lutheran president.??

Innovative design will benefit patients, caregivers, and the community?

The?new Lutheran Hospital will:??

• Expand access to emergency and critical care for families in Jefferson County and the West Denver suburbs.?
• Elevate healthcare in the region with an efficient and flexible facility designed with the patient and staff in mind.??
• Offer distinct areas in the hospital to find respite, including a peaceful atrium for patients, caregivers, and visitors.?
• Be one of the most energy-efficient facilities in the region.?
• Lead in staff efficiency. The hospital has?a decentralized design so nurses are closer to the bedside. Each 16-bed unit has distributed nursing stations to keep noise down.?
• Provide comfort for patients and families. Every patient room is private with a floor-to-ceiling window providing natural light.?
• Offer flexibly-designed patient rooms that can be quickly converted into ICU rooms if needed.?

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Watch a time-lapse video of the new hospital being built??

Caregivers prepare for a flawless move day?

Moving a hospital is a complex and multifaceted years-long process that involves careful planning and coordination across various departments and stakeholders. It requires a detailed strategy for relocating equipment, transferring patients safely, ensuring continuity of care, and managing the logistics of the physical relocation.??

It's a significant undertaking that aims to eliminate disruption to services and maintain the highest standards of patient care throughout the transition.?

Throughout the summer, all caregivers at Lutheran have come to the new facility for training, orientation, events to identify and work out kinks, and participate in practice runs for move day. These exercises are being done to ensure they’re ready for flawless service when the new hospital opens.?

Hundreds of Lutheran caregivers from various departments have participated in day-in-the-life events to identify potential issues and test technologies, equipment, workflows, and clinical scenarios.??

Caregivers tested out how long it took to respond to a code, the fastest routes from the parking garage to their department, travel time from patient rooms to ambulances, where to locate equipment and supplies, and if there were areas where badges didn’t work.?

“More than 400 issues were identified during the first exercise, ranging from signage not yet installed to safety concerns,” said Casey Bogenschutz, director of strategic initiatives. “Since then, we’ve worked through more than 300 of the issues identified and are continuing to work through the rest to make sure everything is perfect come move day.”?

In addition, a team of project managers has systematically sourced, received, and installed more than 10,000 new pieces of equipment and will move more than 3,700 items from the existing hospital.?

Lutheran also held a three-day super user vendor fair that trained super users on the new equipment and the new space. They took that information back to their departments to help their teams with orientation and training.??

All caregivers were required to complete a full-day orientation and tour the new facility to familiarize themselves with the new site, get to know where things are, and prepare themselves prior to move day.?

“We partnered with a company that has done this many times at small and large hospitals, and they’ve brought a wealth of knowledge to this massive undertaking,” said Casey. “The Enterprise Project Management Office has been my right-hand partner and crucial to our success. It takes an entire community, and I’m grateful for all the work that has gone into our move.”?