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Nearly 100 hospital staff, officials and community leaders celebrated the groundbreaking Thursday. Hodges said the project is expected to be complete by December 2026.

At 85,000 square feet, CAMC Teays Valley currently has five operating rooms, two endoscopy rooms, a 10-bed ICU unit and 57 medical surgical-telemetry beds. They employ about 330 full-time and 145 part-time employees.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWhen weÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™re fully operational, we expect an addition of approximately 30 employees, between the nursing folks and the support staff to take care of that building,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Hodges said.

Additional parking out front of the new building will be an added convenience for patients, Hodges said.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œSo people who need outpatient surgery are going to be able to drive in, walk into that building, be admitted, go to their surgery, back to the post-op room and be discharged to their car,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� he said.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥˜A nice growth rateÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™

In November 2006, CAMC purchased Putnam General Hospital, which was built in 1983.

The hospital has continued to grow since it was purchased by CAMC, resulting in the need for expansion, Hodges said.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWe have grown significantly,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Hodges said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve had a nice growth rate. WeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™re getting to the point where we really have no space in the hospital, and we need to expand our surgery rooms.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

CAMC Teays Valley nursing supervisor Wanda Marks is one of several employees who has been with the hospital since it was Putnam General. She has worked there for 27 years.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWhen CAMC purchased the building, they made the commitment to upgrade the equipment and now we have excellent state-of-the-art equipment throughout the building,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Hodges said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve added mechanical support equipment thatÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s been needed as weÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve grown.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

The radiology department experienced immediate renovations, accommodating space for a much needed larger CAT scan.

CAMC also recruited orthopedic and neurology surgeons and physicians and expanded the surgery department, adding an operating room suite.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œProbably the biggest addition has been the number of specialty physicians that weÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve been able to recruit to Teays Valley,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Hodges said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œThere are many CAMC physicians that rotate down to our outpatient building, and we have several physicians that practice exclusively at Teays Valley Hospital.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

CAMC opened its multi-purpose outpatient facility in Hurricane last year and expanded its cancer center services to Teays Valley Hospital as well.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œItÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s a piece of the cancer center in Charleston, so they brought a lot of services to us,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Marks said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œNow our patients donÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t have to travel to Charleston for a lot of these services.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

Still a community hospital

From Putnam General HospitalÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s inception, the goal has been to be a community hospital, Marks said.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWe want to keep our patients here in the community,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� she said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWe donÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t want them to have to travel somewhere else, and with the growth and the expansion of this new facility, itÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s going to be wonderful and continue to be able to bring all these state-of-the-art services to Teays Valley.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

Expanding its services in Teays Valley also allows for residents to live and work in their community, Marks said.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œThey donÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t have to travel to Charleston, to Huntington,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Hodges said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œThey can work right here and see their neighbors.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

Hodges has been with CAMC for 52 years and at Teays Valley Hospital since 2006.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve grown and itÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s all because of the immense loyalty of the patients that we have,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Hodges said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWhen they come here, I think what they see is that our managers, our staff, our physicians are all just exceptional individuals.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�