University of Michigan Health-Sparrow meeting need for more patient care in rural Ionia

ANN ARBOR – University of Michigan Health-Sparrow Ionia will build a new 31,000 square foot ambulatory clinic center adjacent to the current hospital, after approval Thursday from the University of Michigan Board of Regents.

The new facility will improve patient access to health care services in the Ionia community. It will house services including primary care, imaging, oncology, orthopaedics and cardiology. The project reflects U-M Health’s commitment to providing care to our rural communities and the continued success of hospitals such as UM Health-Sparrow Ionia and Carson.

“In the last decade, our Ionia hospital has experienced tremendous patient activity growth in both inpatient and outpatient services. We need this space for both specialty and primary care physicians as well as to support further growth,” said Margaret Dimond, Ph.D., president of the U-M Health Regional Network.

“We are committed to meeting the need of communities like those in and around Ionia County, and other rural areas of Michigan, bringing the right care closer to home for more patients. This is a huge need in the Ionia community, and we are excited to grow to meet the demand.”

The Regents approved an estimated cost of $28 million for the project. Design and construction is expected to take 30 months. Funding will be provided from UM Health-Sparrow resources.

The Ionia hospital, which is located at 3565 S. State Road, was built in 2015.  The facility is LEED certified and houses 22 beds.

“We are happy to expand our community-based services and provide even more access to the clinical expertise of U-M Health,” said Connie O’Malley, chief operating officer of the U-M Health Regional Network.

“We are actively investing in the health care of the people of Ionia and expect this new facility will provide much-needed access to the best providers and best treatment options closer to their homes.” 

About UM Health-Sparrow: University of Michigan Health-Sparrow is Mid-Michigan’s premier health care organization and includes hospitals in Lansing, Carson City, Charlotte, Ionia and St. Johns, as well as UM Health-Sparrow Specialty Hospital, Care Network, the Michigan Athletic Club, and AL!VE. UM Health-Sparrow is part of University of Michigan Health. Through the dedication of our 10,000 team members, UM Health-Sparrow pursues a vision to be nationally recognized as a leader in quality and patient experience. For more information, visit UofMHealthSparrow.org. 

About Michigan Medicine: At Michigan Medicine, we advance health to serve Michigan and the world. We pursue excellence every day in our 12 hospitals and hundreds of clinics statewide, as well as educate the next generation of physicians, health professionals and scientists in our U-M Medical School.

Michigan Medicine includes the U-M Medical School and University of Michigan Health, which includes the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, Von Voigtlander Women’s Hospital, University Hospital, the Frankel Cardiovascular Center, Kellogg Eye Center, University of Michigan Health-West, University of Michigan-Sparrow and the Rogel Cancer Center. The U-M Medical School is one of the nation’s biomedical research powerhouses, with total research funding of more than $800 million.

More information is available at www.michiganmedicine.org.