Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I I N O. X V I 68 Fact Book / Doing Business in Maine M aine Medical Center wel- comed its first patient in 1874 in the imposing Italian gothic- style brick building that still sits atop Bramhall's Hill in Portland today. e hospital, called Maine General at the time, was still under construction, and it's been expanding ever since. A century and a half later, Maine Med is coming down the home stretch of its largest expansion yet, slated to wrap up in 2024. e overall cost of the expansion is $588.4 million. Not only is Maine Med the state's largest hospital, but its parent, MaineHealth, is the state's largest employer in the state, with more than 21,500 employees, according to the Mainebiz Book of Lists. Maine Med employs 9,600 of those people. While advances in medical technol- ogy and increasing demand have always influenced the hospital's many changes, this new project puts a larger focus on the patient experience and anticipat- ing future space needs, both growing trends in healthcare design. "We wanted to increase the capac- ity for what we do great today," says Jeff Sanders, president of Maine Med, the state's largest hospital and the flagship of the state's largest health care system, MaineHealth. at meant increasing capacity to serve both the local com- munity and capacity for procedural care utilized by the whole state. Maine Med's new front door The expansion of Maine's largest hospital will change the shape of patient care B y C a t i e J o y c e - B u l a y I N N OVAT I O N / R & D R E N D E R I N G / C O U R T E S Y O F M A I N E M E D I C A L C E N T E R Maine Medical Center's $588.4 million expansion is on target for a 2024 completion. The project puts a larger focus on the patient experience while anticipating future space needs.

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