Northwestern Lake Forest showcases $49M Grayslake expansion

Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital put its $49 million expansion, which includes an outpatient surgery center, on display Thursday at its Grayslake campus.

The project consists of 70,900 square feet in new construction with the surgery center as its centerpiece. The first surgery is scheduled later this month. A cancer center opened in October.

The project also included the renovation of 7,500 square feet of existing space.

The campus is on Belvidere Road, west of Route 45, and is across from the former Lake County Fairgrounds.

Citing the population of northwestern Lake County, hospital President Thomas McAfee said people “want the highest quality of medical care close to home, and we’re delivering it.”

“With the shift toward outpatient care, the expansion brings the care and convenience that this community needs,” he added.

The open house at the facility was a gala event with a harpist playing as guests hobnobbed with the hospital staff. Among those attending was Lake County Board Chairman David Stolman.

As an affiliate with Northwestern Memorial HealthCare, the facility, as well as the main hospital, have “expanded access to Northwestern’s advanced medical care and also the academia at Northwestern University’s medical school,” McAfee said.

Dr. Eric Russell, interim president and chief executive of the Northwestern Medical Facility Foundation and head of the group’s medical staff, said the group which includes Northwestern University’s medical school and the hospital in Chicago is striving to become one of the top 10 medical complexes in the country by 2020.

The expansion and renovation on the 44-acre campus have been three years in the making, McAfee said.

The surgery center will perform its first procedure on an orthopedic patient late this month in one of the four 500-square-foot operating suites. The center also has 10 private recovery rooms equipped with flat-screen televisions and electronic medical records stations.

In addition to outpatient surgery, officials say the expansion brings accessible, comprehensive cancer care to Grayslake and its surrounding communities.

The 8,700-square-foot cancer center boasts top-of-the-line radiation equipment and offers chemotherapy and infusion treatments. The facility employs 220 people with 58 physicians maintaining private offices.

“We have delivered cutting-edge care to our patients by providing them with expert physicians using the most advanced technology. This is a unique service for a community hospital,” said Dr. Joseph Imperato, the hospital’s director of radiation oncology.

The cancer center features support groups, wellness and nutrition services, rehabilitation, social work and holistic care.

Northwestern Grayslake also offers diagnostic imaging, laboratory, cardiac testing, physical and speech therapy, and an emergency center that treats 32,000 patients a year.

“We have received overwhelmingly positive reception from the community since we opened in 2004,” said McAfee.