Small size big care: Five microhospitals planned for central Indiana

Central Indiana is being targeted for the development of at least five standalone emergency rooms where patients could get trauma-level treatment before being moved to a hospital.

Two of the five microhospitals are proposed for the southside. One will be built near the new Kroger under construction in the Center Grove area, and the other facility will go up on South Emerson Avenue, between the new Kroger and the Franciscan St. Francis Health southside campus.

The proposals come from an asset group based in Texas, but no medical providers have been named. Johnson Memorial Health, Franciscan St. Francis Health and Community Health Network said they are not involved in the projects.

[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]

Plans filed with Greenwood for the State Road 135 microhospital show a one-story 24-hour emergency room with eight rooms for treating and stabilizing patients who could then be moved to another hospital.

The second southside facility, located just north of County Line Road, would include emergency care where patients could be stabilized before being transferred and eight inpatient beds for patients who need 24-hour nursing care for several days, according to plans filed with Indianapolis planning and zoning.

Similar plans have been filed for three additional microhospitals in Noblesville and Avon.

The concept has the interest of area hospitals, but Embree Asset Group has not yet disclosed who will operate the facilities and provide medical care.

Noblesville city planners have asked Embree several times for details about who the company is affiliated with, but officials won’t answer that question, Noblesville senior planner Joyceann Yelton said.

“Does that mean they don’t know or just aren’t willing to say,” Yelton said.

Johnson Memorial Health President and CEO Larry Heydon said a standalone emergency room in the Center Grove area provides another access point to reach patients as a hybrid of an immediate care center and a true emergency room attached to a hospital.

“The idea is a sound idea,” Heydon said. “Nothing is wrong with the idea. Whether that area is saturated with immediate care centers, time will tell.”

A second company has also considered building these types of treatment centers in Indiana, and Johnson Memorial Health would be interested in discussions about possible partnerships, but is not pursuing a project at this time, Heydon said.

Franciscan St. Francis Health, which owns property along State Road 135 in the Center Grove area, is planning the development of its own medical complex in the area, but the details of what would be offered haven’t been determined, according to a statement from president and CEO Dr. James Callaghan.

“White River Township in Johnson County has experienced dynamic growth in recent years,” Callaghan said in the statement. “Franciscan has been researching and planning the development of a medical complex that best serves the needs of people in this area and beyond. We will share details regarding this development when they are finalized.”

Franciscan and Community Health Network have not been asked to partner as the medical providers for any of the new microhospitals, officials said.

In Greenwood, Embree Asset Group has filed plans to build the 16,400-square-foot building in the southernmost outlot of the new Kroger at 5911 N. State Road 135, near Smokey Row Road.

Construction will take eight to 10 months to complete, and about 12 employees would be working at any time, according to the plans filed with the city.

On the southside, just north of County Line Road, the microhospital will be built on just more than two acres of an undeveloped 58-acre lot.

The asset group did not return multiple calls about the project, the medical provider or the location. The Georgetown, Texas company bills itself as providing build-to-suit development, general construction, program management and capital markets advisory for specialty retail, financial, automotive, restaurant, pharmacy, and healthcare facilities.

In Avon, the company wants to built a similarly-sized microhospital on Rockville Road near the Walmart store, according to plans filed with the town.

In Noblesville, the company has picked two-acre sites on 146th Street and State Road 32. The plans describe the microhospitals as short-term treatment areas for patients with severe injuries or illnesses or who are recovering from surgeries. The facilities also include space for X-rays, scans and laboratories.

[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”At a glance” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]

Micro-hospitals in central Indiana

Greenwood: A 24-hour, 16,400-square-foot facility at Smokey Row Road and State Road 135 near the Kroger under construction

Indianapolis: Emergency treatment and short-stay inpatient care 24-hour facility at 8601 S. Emerson Ave., between the new Kroger and Franciscan St. Francis

Noblesville: A micro-hospital at 9410 E. 146th St., and a second facility on State Road 32 at the Promenade development

Avon: A 16,886-square-foot micro-hospital on 2.7 acres at 9613 U.S. 36

[sc:pullout-text-end]