Ribbon cut on St. Luke's Monroe Campus expansion, including 36-bed medical-surgical unit
The ribbon was cut on the expansion of St. Luke’s Monroe Campus on Thursday, April 25.
President of St. Luke’s Monroe Campus Don Seiple, Chief of Emergency Medicine for St Luke’s Monroe Campus Peter Favini and President and Chief Executive Officer of the St. Luke's University Health Network Richard Anderson gave speeches before the ribbon was cut.
“When I looked at it, I thought about how excited we were for what was to come for St. Luke's and for health care in Monroe County at the time,” Seiple said, referring to looking at photos of the campus’s opening in 2016. “A lot of people were telling us how much health care was needed and boy, the residents here vote with their feet and they came in and sought care out with us.”
Seiple also said how excited he still is for the opportunities for health care in Monroe County, as well as how the wider St. Luke’s network has Monroe County’s back in challenging times, citing the COVID pandemic as an example.
Photos: St. Luke's Monroe Campus cuts ribbon on expansion
According to a press release, the expansion includes "a 36-bed medical-surgical unit (increasing the total number of inpatient beds to 134), additional operating and procedural space, expanded outpatient services, a state-of-the-art interventional radiology suite, Homestar pharmacy and a cardiac rehabilitation suite."
“The completion of this expansion represents yet another step in the promise we made to provide better health care services close to home for the residents of Monroe County,” Seiple said in the press release.
Favini said that he has been in Monroe County since 1987.
“When I say 1987, most of my staff says ‘I wasn’t even born then,’ and it’s very true, it’s a young group and it’s very dedicated young group which is good,” Favini said.
Anderson said that St. Luke’s market share in the Poconos has grown rapidly, having been around 3-4% before the campus was open, to around 52-53% today, with an expected market share of 60% once the expanded portion starts to be used.
“That growth that we’ve received them from them, for me, is both energizing and it’s humbling and know that we don’t take that trust for granted,” Seiple said.
Seiple also said that one thing he recently learned was that no individual, person or organization can solve community-based challenges by themselves.
“By working together, we help to solve each of the challenges that we’re working on and I see many faces out here who give their time in their community, who have stepped up in a time of need, and we’ve all worked together and that benefits all of us, and it benefits the patients that we serve,” he said.
Anderson ended the speeches on a call for unity.
“I’m not political, and I won’t talk politics, but right now in our country, it’s so important that we stay together, keep our values, and remember who we are. And I’ll tell you, the steel beams over your head, they’re USA-made steel,” said Anderson. “So, we did our part, you keep doing your part, and we can’t fail.”
The ribbon was cut soon afterward.
Max Augugliaro is the public safety and government watchdog reporter at the Pocono Record. Reach him at MAugugliaro@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Pocono Record: Ribbon cut for expansion of St. Luke's Monroe Campus
