Delaware hospital breaks ground on new campus

Christiana Care Health System is expanding to southern New Castle County, breaking ground on a new facility in Middletown Wednesday afternoon.
Located on 108 acres off Route 299 near Brick Mill Road, Christiana Care’s newest campus will be a free-standing emergency department.

“We’re putting a full service emergency department here… ambulances will come here, we’ll have a helipad, helicopter,” said Dr. Bob Laskowski, CEO and President of Christiana Care Health System.

With its primary campuses located in Newark and Wilmington, Christiana Care says patients living near Middletown currently face a 25 minute drive to local emergency departments. Mayor Kenneth Branner says having the free-standing facility in his town will save residents in southern New Castle County and northern Kent County precious minutes when medical emergencies arise.

“Well the two options were to go to Christiana Care north of the canal or to head south in Dover,” said Mayor Branner, whose town experienced a growth explosion in 2007, 2008. “We are thrilled to death. We been working on it for four years.”

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“The community is growing more rapidly than just about any place in Delaware, and they have health care needs,” said Dr. Laskowski. “And it’s our job at Christiana to meet the needs of our neighbors.”

The 36,500 square foot facility will include 18 treatment bays, eight observation unit beds and will be able to handle 80-thousand plus residents 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Additionally Christiana Care says the new facility will create about 90 new jobs and generate more than 300 construction-related jobs. Construction on Middletown’s new free-standing emergency department is expected to be complete by the first quarter of 2013.

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