Bringing together the resources of UnityPoint Health in Peoria and Pekin is a net benefit to our entire region.
There are countless reasons many of us call the Midwest home. Whether it’s the balance of living in thriving cosmopolitan cities or tranquil rural communities, it’s a place unlike any other. But most importantly, it’s the sense of community and family that makes us proud to call the Midwest home. Earlier this year, UnityPoint Health extended the family to include Pekin Hospital and ProHealth Medical Group. Bringing together the resources of UnityPoint Health in Peoria and Pekin is a net benefit to our entire region. As we move into 2018, we’re leveraging our resources to make care in Pekin and the surrounding communities more convenient and accessible than ever.
In January, we’ll open UnityPoint Health – Pekin East. It’s a new, state-of-the-art medical office building located on Veterans Drive in Pekin. This new facility will allow us to bring together our primary care providers and pediatricians under one roof. By having them in one building, along with x-ray and lab services, accessing care will be more convenient than ever. The third floor will also be home to the UnityPoint Health specialty practices, including an ear, nose and throat specialist, among others.
This goes beyond convenience. It will also provide a collaborative environment in which providers can work together to coordinate a patient’s care. We’ll further enhance that ability in 2018 when the providers in this building, along with our hospital campus and specialists in Pekin, will begin using Epic, the electronic health record used across all of the UnityPoint Health facilities in this region. When that occurs, patients can choose any of our facilities in the area to receive care and know that their medical records will be securely accessible by the provider caring for them.
UnityPoint Health – Pekin East is a 52,000-square-foot building with three stories, each floor housing 26 exam rooms and two procedure rooms. In addition, the first floor will include a community area providing space for health education classes, physician presentations and meeting space. The building’s layout and amenities are aimed at maximizing opportunities for collaboration and care coordination. The high-quality space and equipment will give both our current and future providers a facility in which they will feel fully equipped to care for patients. And the facility is conveniently located, making it easy to get to appointments and find parking. As we continue to invest in Pekin and the surrounding area, we believe this facility will be attractive to physicians who are considering making central Illinois home.
I am looking forward to opening UnityPoint Health – Pekin East. It’s an important next step in bringing our resources in Pekin together with our resources across the region. Additionally, it represents a milestone in access to care for the families we’re serving. I’m hoping that when patients visit this new facility, the amenities and the care they receive shows them how much they matter to UnityPoint Health. iBi
