Construction is more than 75 percent complete on Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset’s 76,000-square-foot vertical expansion project, the most significant construction project on the hospital’s campus since 2007. The two-story addition will include its Orthopedic Center of Excellence, a 35-bed inpatient unit featuring all-private rooms and a rehabilitation gym. It will also house a 10-room Rapid Decision Unit for Emergency Department patients who require additional observation.
About 100 hospital community supporters, donors, physicians and employees got a sneak peek at the progress on the project during a recent hard hat tour and open house coordinated by Somerset Health Care Foundation, the hospital’s fundraising arm.
“This expansion will transform the care that we are able to provide to our patients,” said Patrick Delaney, chief administrative officer, RWJUH Somerset. “Moving our orthopedic unit to this new facility will enable us to make more of our patient rooms throughout the hospital private, which will enhance patient satisfaction and promote healing. The Rapid Decision Unit will help reduce wait times in our Emergency Department and offer greater comfort for our patients and their families.”
Construction began on the vertical expansion with the raising of the first steel beam in December 2022. The final steel beam for the framework of the structure was raised in February 2023. The structure is now fully enclosed as work continues on the interior. A bridge connecting the new pavilion to the main hospital building is also two-thirds complete. Construction work is expected to finish this fall and the facility will open to patients by early 2025.
“We are extremely grateful for the continued support of our community which enables us to provide the latest medical technologies and advanced treatments in state-of-the-art facilities such as this,” said Donna Castronovo, vice president, Somerset Health Care Foundation. “Together, we are making a difference in the health of Somerset County.”
For more information about RWJUH Somerset, visit www.rwjbh.org/somerset.