OSF-Little Company of Mary Expand ER For Coronavirus Pandemic

EVERGREEN PARK, IL — OSF HealthCare was expanding the emergency department at Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Evergreen Park when the coronavirus pandemic reached Chicago. The renovation of the emergency department had been ongoing since August. In a move to more fully support the southwest Chicago area during the public health crisis, OSF-Little Company of Mary ramped up the construction and opened the expanded emergency department on March 26.

The Illinois Department of Public Health and Department of Human Services were on site to assess Phase I of the renovation project. OSF-Little Company of Mary was immediately granted approval to open the new space much earlier than the 2021 completion date.

“I think that there’s a lot of fear in the community right now and this is just another shining light to our community that Little Company of Mary Medical Center is here to serve them with the greatest care and love," said Eileen Knightly, MHA, RN, BSN, vice president patient care services and chief nursing officer.

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The new rooms in the emergency room will offer patients privacy and allow staff to securely isolate patients for their protection and heath care workers’. The cloth curtains have been replaced by doors to ensure medical staff are safe in their work space, so they can take care of patients,” said Armar Bhardwai, M.D., co-medical director of the OSF Little Company of Mary emergency department.

“Here, we’re able to take care of the sickest of the sick, their loved ones. Especially during this crisis – what this new wing brings us is safety for our providers, safety for our patients. We had cloth curtains which we no longer have, we have closed doors to make sure that our providers are safe in their work space, so we can take care of you,” Bhardwaj said.

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