The new UAB facility is at the corner of Flippo Parkway and Mt. Olive Road.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham will break ground for a new freestanding emergency department and adjacent medical office building in Gardendale at noon Thursday, Nov. 2. The new facilities will provide increased access to essential medical services for residents of Gardendale/North Jefferson County. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey will be in attendance at the groundbreaking, along with UAB and Gardendale leaders.
"The design is based on the UAB Medical West freestanding emergency department in Hoover.The two buildings, which will be connected to each other on a 6.2-acre site in the Gardendale city center, are scheduled for completion in spring 2019. Construction will cost $22 million, with a total project budget of $33.9 million. The site is 960 Mount Olive Parkway at the intersection of Mount Olive Parkway and Flippo Road. Brasfield & Gorrie is the general contractor. Sims Architectural Studio is the architect for the emergency department, and Gresham Smith & Partners for the medical office building.
“The freestanding emergency department and medical office building are major additions for the City of Gardendale,” said Gardendale Mayor Stan Hogeland. “Knowing that we will have UAB emergency care available in our town at any hour of the day or night is a reassurance for our residents that first-class medical care is always close at hand. This is a step forward for Gardendale, one that will enhance our overall quality of life, improve access to medical care and stimulate our economy.”
The freestanding emergency department will have 26,700 square feet of space and provide a full range of emergency medicine services staffed around the clock by physicians who are board-certified in emergency medicine. The facility will have an FAA-compliant heliport, advanced MRI/CT/X-ray imaging, 12 exam rooms, a bariatric lift, laboratory services, and a pharmacy. The emergency department will be capable of performing trauma care and will have facilities for isolation and decontamination.
The 38,400-square-foot, two-story medical office building will offer primary care, obstetrics, gastrointestinal care, orthopedics, cardiology, neurology, neurosurgery, ophthalmology and specialty care programs. It will feature a diagnostic imaging suite, lab services, telemedicine and digital public interface kiosks.
Together, the two medical facilities will employ more than 100 staff, including physicians, nurses, laboratory technicians, other medical professionals and office staff.