By Lori Ehde
Luverne Community Hospital and Luverne Medical Center are in the infant stages of a study to determine whether or not a renovation is feasible.
Despite declining inpatient hospital stays, Luverne medical facilities have been providing increasing outpatient and specialty services.
"We've done a good business, and we want to make sure we have the right facilities to deliver those services," said Gerald Carl, hospital administrator.
He said Luverne is seeing increasing numbers of patients utilizing services such as physical therapy, outpatient infusion, chemotherapy, respiratory care, laboratory services and more.
"This change of service structure is being addressed in the physical assessment of the buildings," Carl said. "Our building just isn't well suited for these services."
He added that Luverne's inpatient rooms are outdated, lacking amenities such as personal showers that have become standards in most hospitals.
Luverne Community Hospital Advisory Board is working with Sioux Valley on an architectural study of the hospital and clinic campus.
"The architectural study is to determine if the present hospital and clinic buildings can be renovated," Carl said.
"If the study shows a renovation isn't feasible, alternatives will be reviewed."
Carl couldn't be specific about what those alternatives might be, but an area to the north of the hospital was recently rezoned from residential to residential-institutional to allow for an expansion or building project, if necessary.
Neither the hospital nor Sioux Valley has requested that rezoning. It's simply a decision the city made for the purpose of keeping options for growth open in that neighborhood.
Regardless, Carl said the hospital and clinic have a bright future in Luverne. "Luverne is really a shining star as far as the (Sioux Valley) system is concerned," he said.
Sioux Valley Regional Health Services, a division of Sioux Valley Hospitals and Health System, has retained interim architectural services of Spitznagel Inc.
The Sioux Falls firm has done previous work on the Luverne Hospital and on Sioux Valley Hospital.
Carl said the need for more and better space speaks well for LuverneÕs medical facilities.
"We have a good complement of doctors. The hospitalÕs been busy. Not all communities can say that," Carl said.
"We are adding a doctor this summer, and we have specialists that come this way from Sioux Falls. There are more who would like to come, but we just don't have the facilities here for that."
Carl said there was no specific timetable for the architectural study.
"We want to talk to all parties involved, and whatever we do, we need to make sure everyone's on the same page," he said. "It's very clear something needs to be done."