MidMichigan Health is planning to build a new comprehensive cancer in Midland, the company said on Thursday.
Joan Herbert, who directs MidMichigan’s line of oncology services, said the health system is running out of room to treat cancer patients as baby boomers grow older and their cancer diagnoses increase.
“Our buildings that we do some of this work in are just not big enough,” she said.
The cancer center will be in the current Towsley building, which now houses a variety of medical services, many of which were displaced from their usual sites by last year’s flooding after the failures of the Edenville and Sanford dams.
“We’re gutting the inside,” Herbert said. “The structure will stay, but we’re completely redoing the interior.”
She said the entrance of the redesigned building will have a “warm, welcoming atrium” and be easy for people to get around.
“Believe it or not, your first impression as you walk in can really make a difference,” Herbert said. “It can bring you to a place where it lowers your anxiety level.”
“We want an environment that’s going to temper anxiety so you’re able to hear and understand and digest information about treatment.”
The new 115,000-square-foot cancer center, which carries an estimated cost of $61.5 million, will also allow specialists who currently have offices scattered around the Midland campus to schedule appointments together, Herbert said.
“We’re bringing everyone that works in cancer – our oncologists, our radiation oncologists, our surgeons, our social workers, our pharmacists, our physical therapists, nutritionists – everybody that’s involved in that care – under one roof, so that patients don’t have to bounce around all over town.”
MidMichigan Health said its plans need approval from the state Department of Health and Human Services before construction can begin. The company said it expects to start work on the building next spring.
In the interest of transparency, we note that MidMichigan Health is a financial sponsor of this station.
