CROWN POINT — University of Chicago Dean and Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs Mark Anderson was still practicing medicine at the prestigious John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore when his sister in Merrillville got sick.
He flew into town to help coordinate her care with her doctor who attended medical school, did a residency and completed a fellowship at Indiana University Health. She needed specialty care and the doctor said the best options were likely Indiana University or the University of Chicago.
Anderson asked the doctor to which he would send his sister.
"Without missing a beat, he said the University of Chicago," Anderson said.
The University of Chicago Medicine, one of the top-ranked health care systems in the country, will bring its world-renowned advanced academic medicine to Northwest Indiana when it opens its much-anticipated micro-hospital and multispecialty care center in Crown Point next week.
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"We're bringing complicated and difficult care to a community that's growing and part of our sphere and ecosystem" he said. "The most advanced care providers are no longer confined to Hyde Park."
The medical provider, based in South Side Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, will open a 131,565-square-foot medical facility at 10855 Virginia St. at the 109th Street interchange off Interstate 65 in Crown Point. It aims to open at 7 a.m. Monday morning if it gets its permits from the state.
It will be one of just two comprehensive care centers in Indiana and one of just 71 in the country, said University of Chicago Medicine Northwest Indiana Physician-in-Chief Blase Polite, a Region native who was born at Methodist Hospital in Gary and grew up in Hessville.
"We'll have the most robust pediatric subspecialties in the state outside of Riley Hospital in Indianapolis," said Polite, who helped plan the new facility "from the rivets up. We're not here to compete or put people out of business. We're offering clinical trials and advanced care that's not available here now. Our being here will only help this area and continue to grow it into an attractive destination."
University of Chicago Medicine executives and a large crowd of medical professionals, dignitaries and many local elected officials welcomed the heath system's largest offsite location and first freestanding facility in Indiana. A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place Thursday evening, followed by tours of the gleaming new facility.
"We are so proud to bring academic medicine to this community," University of Chicago Medicine Health System Chief Operating Officer and UChicago Medicine Crown Point Northwest Indiana President Krista Curell said.
UChicago Medicine Crown Point is expected to handle 110,000 patients per year. The $121 million building designed by the architecture firm Perkins & Will will have a small emergency room and inpatient unit with 24/7 clinical coverage, transferring patients to the University of Chicago Medical Center and other hospitals if they require more complex care.
The facility will offer infusion therapy, radiation, medical and surgical oncology, MRI, CT, PET, X-rays, ultrasounds, an ambulatory surgery center, advanced laboratory services, a breast imaging center and access to advanced treatment through clinical trials.
"We're bringing world-class care here to Northwest Indiana," University of Chicago Medical Director of Spiritual Care Marsha Sumner said. "This facility symbolizes excellence in medical care and groundbreaking research."
The University of Chicago Medicine already has had a presence in Northwest Indiana with offices in Schererville, Merrillville, and Crown Point. It acquired the Michiana Hematology Oncology in September and will keep the UChicago Medicine Center Cancer Centers in Chesterton and Valparaiso open at their current locations.
The new facility is expected to increase access to care in Northwest Indiana, where at least 15% of patients travel outside the Calumet Region for medical care. Roughly one in five of those patients visit University of Chicago Medicine facilities.
University of Chicago Medicine also has 1,000 employees who live in Northwest Indiana, up from about 500 a decade ago, Anderson said.
UChicago Medicine Crown Point will offer advance specialty care, including from UChicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center and UChicago Medicine Comer Children's Hospital. It will treat cancer, digestive diseases, heart conditions, vascular issues and neuroscience diseases for patients of all ages.
Adults can receive transplant, pain management, obstetrics and gynecology care. Children can get a number of treatments, including for allergies, immune conditions, endocrinology, infectious diseases, pulmonary issues, rheumatology and ear, nose and throat conditions.
Physicians at UChicago Medicine Crown Point also will perform general, orthopedic and plastic surgery on child patients.
"There's been a lot of excitement in the Crown Point community," Mayor Pete Land said.
The goal is to partner with and not complete with local health care providers since the facility will specialize in more advanced care, University of Chicago Medicine Health System President Tom Jaciewicz said.
"The process took a few years to complete," Jaciewicz said. "When we first had this vision it wasn't big enough so we added another 14,000 square feet. The building grew bigger and bigger. This is our first investment in Northwest Indiana but it's certainly not going to be our last."