UH Ahuja Medical Center Holds Ceremonial Groundbreaking for Phase 2 Expansion Project

BEACHWOOD, Ohio — University Hospitals (UH) Ahuja Medical Center is celebrating its Phase 2 expansion project with a ceremonial groundbreaking on Tuesday, July 20 from 4 to 4:30 p.m.

Media are invited to attend and photos/b-roll will be available following the event. Lead project donors Grace and Michael Drusinsky, Sally and Sandy Cutler and Loree and Steve Potash, as well as other key donors and community members will be in attendance. Remarks will be given by:

• Cliff Megerian, MD, FACS, Chief Executive Officer, University Hospitals
• Alan Papa, FACHE, Chief Operating Officer, UH East Market
• Irwin Haber, UH Ahuja Board Chair
• Monte Ahuja, UH Board of Trustees

UH Ahuja Phase 2 will officially open in 2023. The $236.1 million project is expected to bring hundreds of new jobs to the community.

“As an anchor healthcare institution on Cleveland’s east side, we look forward to evolving UH Ahuja to fit the needs of our patients by offering new and expanded services to the community,” said Alan Papa, FACHE, Chief Operating Officer, UH East Market. “We are not only expanding services that are outgrowing our original configuration, we are designing new buildings from the ground up to allow our caregivers to efficiently provide quality health care and enhance patient experience.”

The 216,000 sq. ft., three-story hospital pavilion addition and the 78,000 sq. ft. Drusinsky Family Sports Medicine Complex will expand the medical center’s footprint by more than 68 percent. The buildings are being designed and developed by HKS Inc. Architects; Sodexo construction management; and Gilbane Building Company, all who served in similar roles in the design and development of the original hospital that opened in 2011. Additional parking and signage has been added to the campus so patients can easily navigate to their current appointments.

“To ensure we provide services to existing and new patients as efficiently as possible, new physicians, nurses and specialists will be recruited to our caregiver staff,” Papa emphasized. “Our goal is to provide an integrated approach to our patient’s healthcare needs, working as a system to get patients back to being healthy at home as quickly as possible.”

UH Ahuja Phase 2 paves the way for a number of new health and wellness initiatives, including:

• Women & Newborn: A family-focused home for expectant mothers and newborns, the Steve and Loree Potash Women & Newborn Center will include maternal-fetal health services, labor and delivery, a neonatal intensive care unit and family gathering spaces. Patients will have access to UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital and UH MacDonald Women’s Hospital specialists. It is estimated that the Potash Women & Newborn Center at UH Ahuja will deliver approximately 2,400 babies annually.

• Breast Health: Empowering patients through comprehensive care, the Breast Health Center will deliver the full spectrum of services, from preventive and wellness care to breast cancer treatment.

• Sports Medicine: Delivering unmatched care for every athlete, the new, world-class Drusinsky Family Sports Medicine Complex will feature a sports performance center, outpatient rehabilitation space, a sports walk-in clinic and dedicated high-tech imaging. In its first year, the complex expects to serve more than 1,350 sports performance patients.