When the Brookwood Baptist Health system decided to develop a Freestanding Emergency Department (FED), they faced heavy regulation from the state of Alabama requiring a Certificate of Need (CON) for approval of the project. Being a true department of the hospital (Brookwood Baptist Medical Center, located about 6 miles away), this FED has all the functionality of the emergency department at the full-service tertiary care medical center including pharmacy, lab services, diagnostics, MRI, CT, X-ray, Ultrasound, etc., a heli-pad and 24-hour ambulance services.
In working with our partner to acquire the CON, we encountered a highly contested environment from market competitors. When the CON was eventually awarded, it marked the first-ever FED in the state of Alabama. The new, ground-up facility required extensive planning and design to achieve a scope of work acceptable to both the state health department and the end-user.
To help achieve the client’s goal of keeping their real estate assets fixed, our partners purchased the land for the development and we continue to serve as an amiable landlord for the health system and parent company (Tenet). This flexible agreement allowed for continuous changes and scope adjustments including last minute funding of owner furnished equipment by the developer as the building was being occupied. Overall, at least 100 different scope packages and rental rate structures were provided and presented for consideration and approval leading to an ideal development solution for the client.
