St. Luke's clinic breaks ground
<p class="p1">Left to right: Chris Ellingson, Jennifer McGinnis, Thelma Olsen, Martin Olsson, Dr. Paul Gochis, and Steve Todd stand in the new location in front of U.S. 93. Next page: Crews are already hard at work constructing the foundation of the new clinic.</p>
<p>Construction crews work at the site of the new St. Luke's clinic in Polson.</p>
St. Luke’s Community Hospital broke ground for a new medical clinic last week in Polson that will meet the demands of patient care in Lake County.
Although the event was a traditional “groundbreaking” in which members of the St. Luke’s Community Healthcare Board of Directors stand ceremoniously with golden shovels, construction began in earnest three weeks ago.
Crews were busy digging a perimeter in preparation for pouring cement for the site’s foundation.
Before the ceremony began, board members Martin Olsson and Thelma Olsen stood in the bright sunshine pleased with the progress.
“I think it’s great,” Olsen said. “We’ve needed it for quite awhile.”
Olsson said the new clinic has been in development for four years, and much needed in Lake County in general, and Polson in particular. The hospital’s other clinic, the St. Luke Community Health Clinic located by the Sportspage Bar & Grill has experienced room shortage in the past.
“Sometimes there’s no room for the patients being treated,” he said.
Jennifer McGinnis, another board member, said that the new clinic will provide primary care in addition to physical therapy offered next year. She stood off to one corner of the construction and pointed to where the physical therapy room would be; looking directly over Flathead Lake with the Mission Mountains in the background. “It’s going to be a great view,” McGinnis said.
McGinnis added that the clinic will be a relief and a big help, since St. Luke’s other clinic is routinely busy.
“We’ve outgrown that clinic,” she said. “This will help us accommodate new patients in the area.”
The new clinic will be located on the hill in between Valley Glass and the Taco Bell, both of which are a part of the Ridgewater Development.
Ridgewater has seen a boom of late in the commercial real estate market, as St. Luke’s new clinic is part of an increased construction trend.
St. Luke Marketing Manager Brooke Roberts said the new facility reflects the changing nature of that particular area. “Ridgewater is beginning to be a healthcare hub,” Roberts said.
It’s not difficult to see why. The new clinic will be less than a quarter mile from their Family clinic.
St. Luke’s CEO Steve Todd reiterated the board’s assessment and added that expansion was necessary.
“We were bursting at the seams,” Todd said. “So we took steps and looked at our options.”
St. Luke used private investments mixed with retained money over the years to fund the new clinic, Todd said.
“It’s been very collaborative with the community,” he said.
As far as staffing goes, Todd said they are actively recruiting physicians to work at the clinic, as well as using the doctors from the other clinic in the meantime.
The land for the clinic was acquired in summer of 2014. Todd expects the clinic to be completed in less than a year.
Officials with St. Luke haven’t decided on the new name yet, but one thing’s for sure: It’s going to have a great view on days when patients might not be feeling so hot.