Braden Health continues to make progress on reopening the former Patrick County Community Hospital, after purchasing the facility at auction. The company is actively working on renovations and regulatory requirements to bring the hospital back into operation.
Kyle Kopec, co-founder and COO, said the opening date remains internal – for now.
“The reason why we do that is with construction and with certifications, timelines shift forwards and backwards,” Kopec said. “We don’t want to say, ‘Here’s a date,’ and then move the date, or open early and have EMS (Emergency Medical Services) not be ready.”
As construction nears completion, Braden Health will provide more specific updates on the timeline.
“It’s just still early on with construction and certification … we’re not within a margin of error or comfortable enough to say this date or that date,” Kopec said. “In a few months, a few weeks, that may change, but we’re not announcing anything at this time.”
Instead of making early public commitments, Kopec said Braden Health prefers to focus on delivering results.
“We’d just rather work and then pleasantly surprise everybody with it being ahead of schedule—or if we need a little bit more time, doing it the right way,” he said.
Braden Health’s decision to reopen Patrick County’s hospital came after the facility had been on the company’s watchlist for rural hospitals in need of assistance.
“An opportunity presented itself for us to be able to provide the services,” Kopec said. “We monitor all of the rural hospitals in the United States, and when an opportunity presents itself, we’re able to act on it.”
Compared to other hospital revitalization projects, this one is relatively straightforward, Kopec said.
“A lot of rural hospitals are in much worse shape than this one,” he said, adding much of the credit for that is due to uninterrupted electrical service and that the building was winterized.
Kopec does not anticipate any single major challenge during the construction process but emphasized the importance of thorough inspections and allowing contractors the time needed to complete their work properly.
“As far as regulatory landscape, that’s been fairly straightforward. The state has given a great amount of attention, and as far as things like movable equipment, our vendors are aware of this project and are keeping an eye on things,” he said.
Braden Health Revenue Cycle Director Larry Henson will serve as the hospital’s acting CEO when the facility reopens.
“It will be a temporary position, but we want to make sure that we get the first CEO for the job to permanently take over this location,” Henson said.
Kopec said Braden Health has a transition team to support new hospitals until they become self-sufficient.
“We’re not announcing a CEO or anything right now, but he’ll sort of be the onsite person that can help Braden Health resources make sure we’re providing the proper training and things,” Kopec said.
As staffing needs arise, the company plans to hire local doctors, nurses, and other hospital personnel.
Kopec said physician interest has already been high, and lack is not a concern.
“It’s not very unusual for us to go into a community, open a hospital, and have a lot of difficulty in bringing physicians in,” he said. “It’s just something that’s not really a concern for us.”
Kopec also noted that he does not anticipate staffing Registered Nurses (RN) to be a challenge either. In Tennessee, Braden Health was the only healthcare company that didn’t experience a nursing shortage or require temporary travel nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, local plumbers, electricians, and workers are being used whenever possible for hospital construction and renovation projects.
Henson said the emergency room (ER) entrance is being cleaned and reorganized to enhance efficiency.
“The layout is already a good layout, so we’re happy with that,” he said.
Beyond the nurse’s station, registration area, and trauma rooms, the medical surgery wing will house patients needing extended care.
The hospital contains 50 rooms in its medical surgery wing. Braden Health will initially license only 25 beds. There are currently no plans to obtain licensing for 50 rooms.
“The utilization of the hospital was never that high with medical surgical,” Kopec said.
Henson said one room is being converted into a medicine room, where staff will store and distribute medication.
Regulatory updates are also being made to ensure compliance with nursing and pharmacy laws.
Several structural improvements are underway, including:
- Plumbing updates to replace hundreds of patch-repaired pipes.
- Asbestos mitigation to comply with safety regulations.
- Electrical rewiring to modernize outdated systems.
- IT infrastructure replacement to remove old, unused wiring.
“The vacuum lines have all been cleared and marked,” Kopec said. “Information Technology (IT) is working on removing all of the wires you see in the roof. None of them are within any of the current use of any medical equipment, so they’re all being pulled out, and we’re going to have people put in new” equipment.
The hospital’s roof replacement project is well underway.
“We peeled off about seven or eight inches of tar roofing before starting the new roof,” Henson said.
The new system includes:
- Six inches of insulation to meet R-Value standards.
- A thick plastic coating for added protection.
- Redone drainage systems.
Company officials are working closely with local officials and EMS personnel to ensure the hospital’s exterior and emergency access points meet safety standards.
EMS Coordinator Scottie Cassell reported issues with ambulance access due to a curb near the ER entrance.
“He said getting the EMS vehicle in was a challenge, so we took out this curb,” Henson said. “He said the lighting was terrible, so we updated the lighting.”
Additionally, some parking spaces near the ER entrance will be designated exclusively for EMS vehicles.
New lighting will be installed around the hospital’s exterior to improve visibility and safety.
“We don’t want anybody hurting themselves going into the actual hospital, so we’ll get some new light poles in here and update this exterior area as well,” Henson said.
The hospital parking lot will also receive repairs before the facility reopens.
“We won’t be opening the hospital with the parking lot’s current state,” Kopec said.
The company is evaluating the feasibility of adding a helipad for critical patient transport.
“The Virginia Aviation Office is going to play a role in it, just like they did the last time when the hospital opened,” Kopec said. “We are on one of the published approaches for the Blue Ridge Airport, so we need to see if that needs to be updated or not with the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).”
Kopec emphasized that even after construction is completed, the state must conduct regulatory inspections before the hospital can begin operations.
“They come through and tell us everything they want us to change, then we do that, then there’s another inspection,” he said. “It’s a very choreographed dance.”
The first state inspection is scheduled for late February or mid-March.
“We’re looking forward to them coming out, hopefully pointing out things preemptively if they see anything that we can already work on adjusting,” Kopec said.
