Wednesday, January 29, 2003

SFMC to invest $8 million in south metro Atlanta

Certificate of need approved for emergency department expansion

South Fulton Medical Center received final approval Dec. 24 for its Certificate of Need from the Georgia Department of Community Health to invest $8 million to enhance services to residents of the south Metro Atlanta area with the addition of a new emergency department.

The proposed project also involves renovations to the emergency department to expand it beyond its current size to more than 14,500 square feet. SFMC's emergency department is significantly undersized to accommodate the volume of patients treated there each year.

"Although operational and personnel changes have already significantly decreased wait times at our emergency department, this expansion from 17 examination rooms to 26 will allow us to go even further to ensure that our patients do not have to wait for much needed care. The new facility will also allow patients from our community to be treated in the comfort that they deserve," said Andrew Agwunobi, M.D., MBA, chief executive officer. "Like our recently approved long-term acute care facility, this emergency department expansion is just one more sign of SFMC's committment to deliver the best possible care to the community south of Atlanta."

South Fulton Medical Center plans to break ground in the first half of 2003 with completion in 2004.

Tenet Healthcare, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates 113 acute care hospitals with 28,502 beds and numerous related health care services. Its hospitals and subsidiaries employ approximately 113,750 people serving communities in 16 states. Tenet's name reflects its core business philosophy: the importance of shared values among partners - including employees, physicians, insurers and communities - in providing a wide spectrum of health care.

Tenet can be found on the World Wide Web at www.tenethealth.com. South Fulton Medical Center, a 392-bed acute care hospital is affiliated with Tenet Healthcare Corporation. In addition to emergency care, the hospital offers cardiac care, physical and occupational rehabilitation, inpatient oncology, ambulatory surgery, and labor and delivery. The hospital also has a level-two neonatology intensive care unit. For more information on South Fulton Medical Center, go to www.southfultonmedicalcenter.com.