Adam Kuhn, project manager for L+M’s ED renovation, showed off part of the new Psychiatric Emergency Services area that is nearing completion.
Adam Kuhn is the project manager for L+M’s ongoing Emergency Department renovation and power upgrade that began about seven years ago, and frankly, he’s seen it all.
Kuhn was there when outdated underground powerlines in nearby streets were dug up and replaced. He saw huge transformers and back-up power generators lowered by crane into the new power plant above the ED’s new waiting room; and he was there for the official opening of that waiting room and adjacent triage areas.
Behind the scenes he’s seen even more, like the challenges construction teams faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to some unavoidable project delays. And year after year, he has seen construction crews enmeshed in the nitty gritty of wires, pipes and ducts, building state-of-the-art private treatment rooms even as ED clinicians cared for patients in rooms just on the other sides of temporary barriers.
Day after day, Kuhn, the L+M Facilities team and the many contractors have moved the chess pieces, closing one hallway for renovation while turning over a completed space to ED staff; then closing another section for more renovations. Throughout, everyone has kept patients and families the top priority in the region’s busiest emergency department. As Craig Mittleman, MD, regional director of Emergency Medicine for L+M and Westerly hospitals, once described the project, “it’s like changing a tire on a car – except the car is still going 70 miles an hour.”
Kuhn is feeling good these days. “We have a light at the end of the tunnel,” he said during a recent walk-through. “We’re going to finish early in 2027.”
There are many successes: Two new CT scanners are up and running adjacent to the ED, and nearby X-ray and ultrasound rooms are complete. A large portion of L+M’s Diagnostic Imaging was relocated to the first floor about a year ago, freeing up space for the CT scanners and ED expansion while creating a state-of-the-art X-ray and Nuclear Medicine outpatient facility.
The biggest remaining part of the renovation is construction of the ED’s new Psychiatric Emergency Services (PES) area, scheduled for completion in late September. There will be eight patient rooms, a nurses’ station and areas for counselors and staff. Each patient room will feature a “CoWin” board – a touchscreen built into the wall that allows patients to interact safely with caregivers and family without leaving their room. The screens can also be used as de-escalation tools with educational and relaxation apps.
And like Rubik’s Cube squares realigning into final formation, when patients move into the new PES area, the old PES will be closed and converted into storage areas and a staff lounge. A temporary staff lounge occupying part of the old ED waiting room will then get renovated – one of the last remaining patient care spaces to be upgraded before completion.
“We’ve been immersed in this for so many years, but it’s all coming together now,” Kuhn said. “It’s been challenging, yes, but really, it’s been a pleasure to work with Dr. Mittleman and all the ED staff, as they’ve been incredibly patient. I think everyone realizes that we’re going to leave the ED team with a facility to match the great care they have always provided.”
