Apple Valley Medical Center Hosts Open House for Newly Expanded Facility.

APPLE VALLEY, Minn. -- "This is a great day in the city of Apple Valley," said Apple Valley Mayor Mary Hamann-Roland. "Apple Valley Medical Center has changed the landscape of medicine." Speaking to a crowd of approximately 300 community residents, health care providers, patients and business leaders at an open house of the Apple Valley Medical Center on Saturday, April 21, Mayor Hamann-Roland referred to the center's 30-year history of being open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and to its system of providing integrated care services under one roof.

The Apple Valley Medical Center has provided 24-hour Urgent Care since its beginning in 1974. E. John English, M.D., one of the founders of the center, said the facility had never closed its doors in more than 30 years. "I don't have a key to this facility," he said. "I don't need one. It's always open."

Today, the Apple Valley Medical Center includes an independent clinic of 14 family practice physicians, serving patients from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., five days a week, including same-day appointments. In addition, there are 20 board certified specialty physicians seeing patients through the United Specialty Center. Specialists on the campus provide services in allergy; cardiology; colon and rectal surgery; dermatology; ear, nose and throat; general surgery; low back & neck care; neurology; ob/gyn; ophthalmology; orthopedics; plastic surgery, podiatry and urology. The center also houses medical imaging, a full-service pharmacy, occupational health services, and physical medicine and rehabilitation care.

Growth over the last few years demanded an expansion of the center at 14655 Galaxie Avenue in Apple Valley. Construction began in April 2006 to add 20,000 square feet of space, providing 50 percent more space in family practice, urgent care and the specialty center, including 35 new exam rooms and two new procedure rooms. The pharmacy doubled in size, and a new medical imaging center now provides on-site digital mammography, ultrasound, MRI and CT scanning. In addition, there is a new parking ramp to make visits to the center more convenient for patients. Total cost of the expansion was $8.5 million.

"Despite the normal external disruption caused by the construction, we are proud that the medical center was able to operate at normal capacity inside throughout the expansion," said Doug Shaw, administrator of the Apple Valley Medical Clinic, which resides in the center.

"The Apple Valley Medical Center underscores the importance of providing integrated care for patients, especially those with medically complex conditions such as diabetes and congestive heart failure," said Dan Foley, M.D., Vice President, Medical Affairs, for United Hospital, which operates the United Specialty Center and United Medical Imaging on the campus. "We treat patients of all ages along the entire continuum of care."

Facilities within the center see approximately 1,350 new patients every month. Family practice and specialty physicians alone have more than 115,000 patient visits each year - from youngsters with sore throats and broken bones to adults with diabetes and heart disease.

Mayor Hamann-Roland also complimented the center on its community involvement. "You have established an important relationship with the community," she said. "You're about our public safety. You're about our public health. Today is a great day to celebrate what is here, but also a partnership that has infinite possibilities for the future."

The construction project was managed by Davis Real Estate Services Group, LLC, with Timco Construction, Inc.; Pope Associates, Inc.; and Gilbert Mechanical and Electric.