Good Samaritan moves first patient to new tower

VINCENNES, Ind. (WTHI) – Good Samaritan Hospital Friday started moving patients into its newly opened Gibault Memorial Patient Tower. The first patient, Mary, took a ride via hospital bed into the new facility at 8:30 a.m.

From 8:30 a.m., through noon Friday hospital staffers would move one patient every 15 minutes. Hospital CEO, Rob McLin, acknowledged his staff spent hours planning for the move. Many of the patients would come from the hospital’s intensive care unit.

“I know the nursing staff had a tremendous amount of meetings to coordinate all of the patients that are coming over,” stated McLin.

As each patient passed into the new hospital wing, a team of hospital staffers came in tow, carting medical equipment, pillows, and hospital paperwork. The first round of patients, McLin explained, were those with the most need. Patients coming from intensive care would not have to ride an elevator to get to the new facility.

“We wanted to go with the most severe patients first. We knew we were going to be ready in the intermediate and the critical care side, so we wanted to start with those patients,” McLin added.

Notably, intensive care patients, McLin noted, typically have more medical supplies during their stay.

“With the severity of the patient there are a lot of things going on. That patient may have oxygen. They may have a lot of things attached to them that you can’t just take apart while you’re moving the patient over.”

Good Samaritan Hospital staffers hope to have all patients moved into the new tower by the second week of August.