Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/479389
2014 | Doing Business in Connecticut 77 way it's carried out," said Stephen B. McPherson, president and CEO of the nonprofit Masonicare, which is based in Wallingford. "We're moving away from a hospital-centric model to one where we're less focused on curing a disease than we are on preventing a disease to begin with." Of all the state's health care companies, McPherson has a unique view on what the focus on prevention means. As an execu- tive at an organization with an elderly client base, McPherson is projecting increased demand for in-home care as insurers and Medicare/Medicaid place a greater emphasis on keeping people independent and in their homes for as long as possible, rather than in hospitals where care is more expensive. He also predicts other health care systems will follow the Masonicare model, which has a very integrated approach to health care. e $176-million organization has a full suite of care options from primary care doctors who specialize in treating the elderly, to inde- pendent and assisted living sites, to nursing homes and hospice care. "As your health needs change, we move you through our continuum … It's all here," he said. Growth opportunities Of course, even with the best prevention programs and integrated health care companies, there will be cases where someone has to visit a hospital. And the hospitals in the state are under- going a building boom, updating many facilities that were originally built 20 or 30 years ago. One significant hospital expansion in the state is the new $150 million, 316,000-square- foot tower at Danbury Hospital, which is part of Western Connecticut Health Network. e tower, which includes patient rooms, a new lobby and a new emergency department, was expected to be complete in June 2014. "It's the largest building program that we've had since the late 70s," said Morris Gross, vice president of facilities and real es- tate for Western Connecticut Health Network. When the new tower is completely oc- cupied, the hospital will only have single- room beds, according to Gross. "We finished the existing bed tower in 1978," Gross said. "at's a long time ago. A lot of double rooms were a part of that. at's one of the things that we get a lot of complaints from patients about." e single rooms will not only be lo- cated on the inpatient floors, but also in the emergency department where there are 69 patient bays, a significant increase from the 36 bays in the old emergency department. Hospitals in Connecticut are also invest- ing in technology to help speed recovery and Wallingford-based Masonicare has been ahead of the cur ve in terms of offering integrated medical ser vices. Pictured is a rendering of the nonprofit's planned 179-unit independent and assisted living facility in Mystic. Largest hospitals in CT (Ranked by pa ent beds) Yale-New Haven Hospital, New Haven Har ord Hospital, Har ord Saint Francis Medical Center, Har ord St. Vincent's Medical Center, Bridgeport Hospital of Central Connec cut, New Britain Source: CT Office of Health Care Access Connecticut hospital discharges by type Danbury Hospital is one of many hospitals in the state that has begun or recently completed a major building project. Above is a rendering of Danbury's new tower, which was expected to be completed in June 2014. Source: CT Office of Health Care Access Medical/Surgical 71% Maternity 10% Newborn 9% Psychiatric 6% Pediatric 3% Rehabilita on 1% RENDERING/COURTESY RENDERING/DANBURY HOSPITAL Continued on page 82 >