Intercom

Volume2/1977_September09INTERCOM Approvals obtained for center expansion have been designed to allow maximum flexibility for future growth, according to John A. Dixon, Vice President for Health Sciences. "That's important because of the need to construct the project in stages and because we don't want to premept long-range development of the health sciences," he said. Construction activity, to begin this fall, will include re-routing of Medical Drive; addition of parking lots to accommodate 400 car spaces; relocation of water, gas and sewer lines; development of an alternate temporary main entrance to the current Medical Center building; and erection of fences around the new hospital building site, north of the present building. In the spring, excavation for the building's foundation will start. Work is going forward rapidly on the development of schematic design drawings for the clinical facilities. It will be followed by planning and design of the research building. The schedule, however, calls for completion of the research building prior to completion of the clinical facility. Editor's note: This article was prepared to provide an overview of the current status of the Medical Center expansion. Brief status reports about the expansion will appear periodically in an Intercom feature, "Expansion Update." Architects' model shows completed Medical Center expansion. Major decisions have been reached that will accelerate the detailed planning and construction of the Medical Center additions. A new research building and a building to house new clinical facilities are included in the decisions. During the summer, the University of Utah Institutional Council and the State Building Board approved the overall site plan for the Medical Center expansion. They also approved ^ block planning, which establishes the location of basic science departments; clinical departments; and teaching, research and patient care areas within the new and remodeled Medical Center facilities as they will exist when the construction stage is completed. The two boards endorsed an early delivery system that will both speed up the total building program and allow for sequential construction contracts to be awarded on various phases of the expansion program. Medical Center expansion plans The plans acted upon by the administrative boards propose the relocation of a portion of Medical Drive to the west of the State Division of Health Building. The plans also indicate that a multi- level parking facility north of the present heliport may become a necessary alternative to space consuming surface parking. In addition, the two boards authorized the managing architect to begin the pre- qualification process that will lead to the appointment of a general expansion project contractor early in October. CENTER MWQI New policies A new University parking fine schedule will go into effect by mid-September making it more costly for staff members who receive parking tickets to delay paying their fines. Initial fines, if paid within seven days, will remain at $2 and $5, depending on where the ticketed car is parked. But after seven days these fines will go up to $5 and $7. Then at least once each quarter the University parking services department will collect outstanding parking fines through automatic payroll deductions, the fines will become $10 and $12. Services available Medical Center volunteers have gone into the clothing business, but not for profit. The volunteer auxiliary has established a " clothes closet" to house standard items of men's and women's clothing in various sizes. The clothing is available to patients in need at discharge or at another time during their hospital stay. The service was established because it is not uncommon for accident victims and other patients to find themselves in the hospital without clothing of their own. Patient units can arrange for their patients to use the volunteer clothes closet by contacting the volunteer office, ext. 2278. Round-the-clock repair services are available from the engineering department when the situation war-rants even though that department's normal service hours are 7:30 A.M . to 4 P.M. If patient care equipment doesn't function properly, or a light bulb burns out in a crucial area, or mechanical difficulties occur, the staff members affected can make a trouble report by calling 2241- at any hour of the day. After normal working hours, calls to that number automatically transfer to the building operator, who will take the necessary actions on problems reported. The operator may be able to make an emergency repair or, if necessary, call in another engineering staff member to remedy the problem. Non- emergencies- such as problems with televisions- may be reported after hours, but they will be routinely responded to during the regular work day. Trouble report calls must be authorized by the head nurse of the patient unit involved or by the nursing supervisor. Goings on The division of artificial organs sponsored a houseboating excursion for the patients of the home dialysis training center Aug. 25 - 28, enabling them to enjoy sightseeing, swimming and waterskiing on Lake Powell without being away from their dialysis machines. The patients were invited to bring a family member or guest, and the complete excursion group, which occupied several houseboats, also included doctors, nurses, dialysis technicians and a dietician. All kidney disease patients on the trip were dialyzed at intervals by means of the wearable artificial kidney. Golf galore The Health Sciences Center Volunteer Auxiliary recently presented the Intermountain Burn Center with a gift of $4,640 - the profits of the auxiliary's 3rd annual benefit golf tournament held Sept. 1 at Mountain Dell Golf Course. Helping the volunteers reach their fund- raising goal were 237 Medical Center and community participants who vied for prizes donated by local businesses. In addition, many Medical Center departments and staff contributed to the tournament by sponsoring holes. The event was planned by a large volunteer committee with Bonnie Osterstock serving as chairman and Bonnie Woods as co- chairman. The overall 9- hole winner was Dr. Ralph Richards. The men's division (18-hole) winner was Chris Chaprin, and the women's division (18-hole) was Rip Young. The annual UUMC Golf Classic, a not- so- serious tournament for both serious and novice golfers, will be held Friday, Sept. 16, on the University Golf Course. Tee-off times will be set every ten minutes between 10 A. M. and 5 P. M., and an after-tourney awards party will be held at Sunnyside Park, beginning at 6 P.M. The classic is a scotch foursome tournament, which is a variation of golf in which partners of opposite sexes play one ball, taking alternate shots for a combined score. The entry fee is $4 per person, including the awards party, or $ 2per person for the tournament only. For further information, contact the development and community relations department. Intercom University of Utah Medical Center Intercom is published every two weeks by the Department of Development and Community Relations, University of Utah Medical Center, AC111, for the purpose of interdepartmental communications. Article ideas, letters to the editor, and questions for investigation are welcome at any time