Mercy files plan for emergency facility

Site plans are under final review for the construction of an emergency facility at the new Mercy Clinic in Bella Vista.

This will likely be the first freestanding emergency department in the state, said Mercy spokesperson Jessica Eldred.

The Mercy Clinic in Bella Vista, which opened in December, is also a first of its kind in Arkansas, and was built with the intention of adding an emergency facility.

Eldred said the location of the clinic make sense for an emergency department, considering the surrounding population and position on the U.S. Highway 71 corridor.

"This is a process all on its own. We have been working with the state for quite some time. When we open it, we want it to be right," she said.

The clinic already has convenient care access, she said, including CT and X-ray machines.

Planning Director Chris Suneson said plans were received in his office Feb. 25. A building permit can be issued following the final review.

Since the amount of square footage shown on the plans is less than 50 percent of the total square footage of the existing building, Suneson said the large-scale development plans do not need approval of the city's Planning Commission.

Plans for a helipad were not included in site drawings, Suneson said.

Fire Chief Steve Sims said the facility will be a benefit to the city.

"It will give people in the community a convenient place to seek emergency care that doesn't require ambulance transport," he said.

Sims is currently working with Mercy to develop a protocol to determine what types of patients will be transported to this emergency department.

Sims said if it is a condition that will likely cause a patient to be admitted, they will probably be transported to Mercy Medical Center in Rogers.

He said some patients also request to be transferred to Northwest Medical Center in Bentonville.

"This is going to be an asset to those close (to the clinic). It is important to Mercy to bring that type of access to the community," Eldred said.

General News on 04/16/2014