At Mather, a groundbreaking for new $52M emergency department

Mather Hospital in Port Jefferson held a groundbreaking on Thursday for a new $52 million, 26,000-square-foot emergency department.

The new space will double the size of the current facility, which right now serves about 40,000 patients each year.  Designs for the new facility are intended to “maximize patient privacy and caregiver support, increase process efficiencies, and incorporate the best practices for patient safety,” according to a press release about the groundbreaking.

The new facility will be named the Frey Family Emergency Department, named for the Port Jefferson family that has shown “tremendous support,” according to Mather.

“I’ve lived in the community since the 1960s. There have been countless times over the decades that Mather has provided excellent health care for our family and friends,” Kathryn Frey, a member of Mather’s advisory and foundation boards, said in a statement. “Everyone will benefit from our new expanded Emergency Department.”

“This is one of the most ambitious building projects in Mather Hospital’s history,” Kevin McGeachy, the hospital’s executive director, said in a statement. “We are re-imagining what emergency care can be for our community. The Emergency Department is our font door. More than three quarters of the patients who are admitted to Mather come in through our ED.”

The new facility will be located on the north side of the hospital campus. It will feature individual private rooms and use a split-flow design that has proven to accelerate treatment and discharge of patients with lower-acuity conditions and speed hospital admissions for patients with higher-acuity conditions. The facility will include imaging services including X-ray, ultrasound, and CT technology; isolation rooms for infectious disease control; and a dedicated treatment area for those experiencing a mental health crisis.

“Our new ED will provide a healing environment that meets the needs of our community when they are experiencing an emergency: space for patients and their loved ones to be comfortable, privacy to allow clear communication with our healthcare providers, and a format that lets our staff work more efficiently so they can spend more time at the bedside,” Dr. Adam Wos, director of emergency medicine at Mather, said in a statement.

The construction of the new facility is expected to be completed in 2025.

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