It’s not every day that a hospital relocates to a new spot, but that’s what is happening at Women & Children’s Hospital. The hospital will move from its current location on Bryant Street to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus in several stages beginning on January 3.
“There’s seven clinics that will move and so what you’ll see in January then April and October of ’17 is a phased and orderly approach of moving our out patients clinics which really serves thousands and thousands of patients and families every year. But we’re moving the clinics in a phased and orderly fashion in preparation for the big hospital move next November,” Kaleida Health spokesman Michael Hughes told WBFO.
The clinics will be moved to the newly completed Oishei Children’s Outpatient Center at 1001 Main Street connected to the John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital, which is currently under construction on Ellicott Street.
Despite concern in the lead up to this move, Hughes reassures patients and their families can be confident that the transition will go smoothly due to the years of planning and preparation in the process.
“We’re already in the works now, its December of 2016, working up to the day of which will be next November,” he said. “So the logistics of the move, how patients will travel, what ambulance services we will use physicians that will be accompanying patients and families. It’s a daunting task but something that our organization our employees and our workforce are up to.”
The hospital has launched a campaign to keep those
effected informed for what will become one of only 43 free-standing children’s hospitals in the nation.
“We have launched a new website, childrensismoving.com, to track progress but we’ve also dropped our first piece of literature to former patients, donors, community members, physicians, about 20,000 pieces. Social media, direct mail, website, press outreach so just to make sure there is a comprehensive push to get our first announcement out.”
There will be shuttle transportation provided for those who need it from the old location to the new one until the move is completed.