417 Magazine: More Care for Local Kids
By Alyssa Roney
In the United States, the state of pediatric health services can be fraught as the healthcare research firm Advisory Board indicates a difficult financial year for pediatric hospitals. Prospects are looking up in 417-land, though, especially as Springfield takes on not one but two new pediatric facilities. The first, St. Louis Children’s at CoxHealth, is a pediatric hospital that opened in March at Cox Medical Center South. The second, the Children’s Mercy with Mercy O’Reilly Pediatric Center, is a brand-new facility that opens in December at Mercy Springfield’s south campus. Both serve different purposes but work together to localize pediatric care.
This is pressing because currently, one in three children in the area has to seek medical care outside of the community. Dr. John Burson, a Mercy Springfield pediatrician and medical director of Children’s Mercy with Mercy, says that having to drive to bigger cities is taxing not only children but their families. “People forget, but that’s very disruptive to the parent, to the family unit, if the patient has to go and travel,” Burson says. “A lot of times that means a parent has to take a day off work, and sometimes financially that’s hard because they need the paycheck; they need to be able to work.” With the new facilities, children will be better cared for in the Springfield area, whether it’s for medical emergencies or routine visits.
Children's Mercy with Mercy O'Reilly Pediatric Center
Children’s Mercy with Mercy O’Reilly Pediatric Center is the joint venture between Children’s Mercy in Kansas City and Mercy Springfield Communities. The $30 million new facility is 40,000 square feet, with wings for both primary and specialty pediatric care. Caregivers at the facility will be stationed in Springfield, which Dr. John Burson says is especially important in order for specialist pediatricians to feel supported. When the facility opens in December, initial services open for patients include pediatric specialties, pediatric primary care, lab and radiology. More than 100,000 children throughout the community are expected to be impacted through its services. The space uses the expertise of Children’s Mercy to craft a center especially for children. “We’re really creating a space that’s comfortable, calming and colorful combined together so that they’re not afraid of the care that they’re receiving,” says Debbie Schwartzkopf, chief administrative officer for Children’s Mercy with Mercy.
Read the full article via 417 Magazine
PRESS RELEASE: Children's Mercy and Mercy Springfield Communities Celebrate Construction Milestone