Before the pavilion opening: dress rehearsals

Dress rehearsals and move-in dates have been set for ARRMC’s pavilion as more than 180 staff members on multiple committees continue their yearslong work preparing for the February 2024 opening.

Departments and their patients will begin moving into the pavilion Feb. 3 in stages over four days. Units include surgical services, sterile processing, respiratory therapy, critical care, labor and delivery, newborn intensive care and pediatrics.

Employee tours of the pavilion will take place in November and December.

“You are going to be blown away,” ARRMC Interim CEO Joe Austin told employees gathered for a town hall last week, describing the pavilion’s size, its advanced equipment, the quality of the construction and its capacity to serve the region. “It’s truly going to be a treasure for this community.”

Austin, who was hired in January originally for a six- to nine-month tenure, will remain the executive sponsor for the pavilion until its opening.

The move will be like-for-like, meaning little change in the number of active patient beds until units are fully staffed and acclimated to the new environment.

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Clinical dress rehearsals will take place in December and January. The rehearsals will feature various scenarios that prompt team members to locate the equipment and supplies they would need if it were a real-life situation.

Some scenarios will be as simple as a patient being transferred to PACU (post-anesthesia care unit) after a procedure, or as complicated as a premature baby needing a blood transfusion while a distressed family member prompts a “code combative person” activation.

“Dress rehearsals give team members on the units a chance to make sure they know where their critical supplies are before go-live,” said Michelle Cathcart, construction operations manager for the pavilion and former ARRMC NICU manager. “If they need a pint of blood, where do they go? If they’ve got a Code Blue, where are the crash carts?

“From the rehearsals, we can identify any potential snags or workflow changes needed and get them resolved before we move in.”

Delays in the delivery of switchgear, which ensures safe, stable power, pushed the pavilion’s opening by several months. Asante installed temporary switchgear in June so that interior construction could continue until the final piece of switchgear arrives in October. Asante will be handed the keys to the building on Dec. 20.