By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
In keeping with requests from the community, CVMC is adding a women’s center as part of the expansion of the hospital addition now underway. Randy Cuff, Chief Operating Officer at Central Valley Medical Center (CVMC), offered the Pledge of Allegiance at the opening of Nephi City Council on Tuesday. At the invitation of the council, he also told of the expansion project at the facility with construction expected to be completed in 2021. “The new expansion was projected to open in November,” said Cuff. “Because of the weather we have been having, it will likely open in January.” The non-profit CVMC is managed by Rural Health Group. In 2011, CVMC completed construction of a beautiful surgical center within the hospital. The project increased the overall surgery space and added surgical suites specifically designed to accommodate orthopedic surgery. This area is part of an 8,500 addition to the existing Nephi Campus. “Our new orthopedic clinic provides space to accommodate Dr. Joel Holman and Dr. Chris Karrasch. To enhance communication and efficiency, this addition has placed our physical therapists adjacent to the orthopedic clinic,” said Cuff. “I want to thank you for maintaining the small town feel at CVMC,” said Justin Seely, mayor pro tempore. “You do that while providing top quality medical care.” He said that his association with the clinic and the hospital went back to the days of Ina Morgan. [Morgan taught business classes at Juab High School and then worked for the Juab County Hospital from 1952 to 1979 as Office Manager.] He thanked Cuff for the commitment to the community and to the patrons of the medical facility. “You are also heavily involved in the opioid prevention program in the area,” said Seely. The addition will add a 49,392 square-foot, three floor building to the existing hospital and renovation of an additional 13,586 square-feet to existing areas. The three-floor addition now under construction will bring with it expansion and renovation to the emergency department, laboratory, surgical suites, dietary department, business office and will include a dedicated upper floor for a new secure labor and delivery unit. “We will bring back the business office now located in temporary space across from the hospital,” said Cuff. He said that the health care facility currently has 352 employees. “We are pleased that this expansion will meet the growing healthcare needs of our community,” said Cuff. One of the complaints of patrons in the past had been that the labor and delivery areas of the hospital had been in the center of the interior. The new location will mean greater privacy and will require family members to have a code to check into the area. “The second floor has been designed exclusively for the Women’s Center. A secure labor and delivery unit will offer privacy, with plenty of room for families to celebrate the baby’s arrival.” The project was designed by the architects of WPA Architecture and is being built by Westland Construction. Cuff said that CVMC tries to be sensitive to the desires of the community when they make requests for certain services. The administration, several years ago, received many requests for a pediatrician. “Three years ago we added a pediatrician to our staff,” he said. The latest requests had been for a urologist and administration was looking for someone who would like that job and would join the staff in Nephi. On July 2, 2018, Central Valley Medical Center located at 210 East Main Street, Santaquin, opened for business. The clinic started off with five physicians: Doctor Jason Standring, DO and Doctor Robertson Ward, MD, Primary Care and Family Physicians, Doctor Gordon Duval, DO, Pediatrician, Doctor John Sorensen, MD, General Surgeon, and Doctor Chris Karrasch, MD, Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Physician. “The clinic is doing very well,” said Cuff. The Fountain Green CVMC Medical Clinic was recently expanded as well, he said. Doctor Mark C. Oveson, MD, Family Medicine, and Christie L. Mangelson, NFP, General Practice are located there. The staff includes more than 29 practicing physicians and over 25 specialty services including everything from standard doctor visits to surgical needs. A few of those physicians visit the clinic and provide skilled services on a monthly basis while still maintaining practices elsewhere. CVMC opened its doors as a small rural hospital owned by Juab County in the 1950s. “We have grown from a single hospital to a not-for-profit healthcare system that provides medical care to rural communities in Central Utah,” said Cuff. “In 2001, construction of a brand-new, spacious 50,000-square-foot facility was completed.” Kent Jones, council member, said that he understood that UDOT (Utah Department of Transportation) was planning to extend the highway by the hospital to make it easier for traffic to access the facility. CVMC is a Critical Access Hospital that is a recognized and distinguished leader in Central Utah. In 2006, a major 25,000-square-foot construction project added patient rooms, a large same-day surgical center, education facilities and much-needed physician and clinic office space. A separate building was completed on the hospital campus to house a retail pharmacy and Home Health agency. Don Ball asked if the medical helicopter located at the hospital would be moved to the roof. “It will stay on the pad where it is now located,” said Cuff.
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