The renovation and expansion of Regional Health Rapid City Hospital, located in Rapid City, S.D., began today. The hospital kicked off its major expansion project and celebrated the Phase 1 completion of its multistory covered parking structure.

The full project will encompass a new three-story front entrance, a larger and more efficient emergency department, as well as additional space for patient beds and medical offices. Other components include space for clinics and future growth, along with Phase 2 of the parking structure.

When fully complete in 2020, the $200 million project will add 266,000 square feet of internal space and 1,296 parking stalls, with 665 of them covered.

The three-story, glass front entrance will connect to the new parking ramps and surrounding hills. It will enclose a large commons area catering to the public with community spaces, dining and spiritual healing spaces. Other amenities include a waiting lounge, home medical equipment and retail shops.

The new 36,000-square-foot emergency department will be half again as large as the current one, with 34 private exam rooms, five trauma exam rooms, and three resuscitation rooms. An enclosed drive-through ambulance garage will have space for up to six ambulances. The current department has 26 exam rooms, including six trauma rooms, and the enclosed garage has space for three ambulances. The new emergency department will also have an integrated clinical decision unit with 12 rooms and future growth space for an additional six.

From the bottom up, the lower level will have space for the future addition of support and environmental services, clinical engineering and storage. The hospital currently lacks interior space for growth. Level 1 will feature the expanded emergency department. It also will include future growth space for pre-op and surgery areas. There also will be access to outdoor healing gardens. Level 2 will house the 32-bed cardiac intermediate unit. Level 3 will house future integrated clinic space—specialty clinics that connect to the hospital for the benefit of patients and doctors. A helipad on the fourth level will have elevator access directly to trauma and emergency services.

The design of the new patient rooms departs from the clover-shaped pods used for the existing hospital towers. The new design follows a Lean-Led initiative to maximize efficiency. Complementing the hospital expansion is an upgrade to the central utilities plant to create additional capacity for heating and cooling.