Tift Regional Health System (TRHS) has started the construction of a new $22 million musculoskeletal center at the Tift Regional Medical Center (TRMC) West Campus, located in Tifton, Ga., which will consolidate outpatient orthopedic, rheumatology, neurology, pain management and rehabilitation services into one facility.

The Hospital Authority of Tift County secured low-interest financing through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s rural development program for the new facility project.  The musculoskeletal center will be a three-story, 80,000-square-foot medical office building. The project is expected to be completed by the spring of 2018.

The first floor will be occupied by Georgia Sports Medicine, which offers general orthopedic and spine care.  Though the practice will be moving, Georgia Sports Medicine will continue to perform day surgeries at Tift Regional’s outpatient surgery center.

The second floor will house the Arthritis and Osteoporosis Center of South Georgia, the TRMC Pain Management Center and Affinity Neurology, respectively offering rheumatology, pain management and neurologic care.  The third floor will be dedicated to TRMC outpatient physical therapy, spine therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy.

The Hospital Authority of Tift County also has a new expansion project for TRMC in the planning stages, which will consist of a new emergency room and patient tower.  The authority is also exploring a replacement facility for Cook Medical Center in Adel.