Children’S Hospital Proposed Centralized Pediatrics Could Be Part Of New Addition At Sacred Heart

Spokane will get a new children’s hospital if a proposal from Sacred Heart Medical Center is approved by its governing board, hospital officials announced this week.

The new facility would be housed in two or three floors of a proposed eight-story addition on the west side of Sacred Heart at McClellan Street and Seventh Avenue.

The proposal must be approved by Providence Services Eastern Washington, which is the governing board of Sacred Heart and other Eastern Washington health organizations. But Marilyn Thordarson, hospital spokeswoman, said officials were unsure when the proposal would be considered by the board or when construction could begin.

Dr. Mike Donlan, chairman of Sacred Heart’s pediatrics department, said a children’s hospital would bring together several kinds of pediatrics professionals in one facility. He said parents of sick children sometimes are confused and frustrated because they must make trips to many parts of the city to receive treatments their children need.

“If we coordinate care, we can provide better care,” Donlan said.

Sacred Heart announced a $65 million plan to build the addition this summer, but the children’s hospital was not part of the plan. The new project would add to the cost, but Thordarson said specific figures aren’t yet available.

The children’s hospital would include Sacred Heart’s current pediatrics facility in the main building and would be connected to it.

The new unit wouldn’t add any beds to the pediatrics unit, Donlan said. The extra space would go to new outpatient clinics, offices and other services.

Besides the children’s hospital, the addition would house a women’s services unit, operating rooms and a newborn intensive care facility.

Peggy Mangiaracina, children’s services director, said creating the facility at Sacred Heart would allow doctors to draw on the other services it would provide.

“We’re looking at having a hospital within a hospital,” said Carol Sheridan, hospital vice president.