Virginia Regional Medical Center

Master Planning for a Growing Medical Campus

The Virginia Regional Medical Center (VRMC) has been a valued client for DSGW since the 1940s. Over the years, we have been involved in a number of projects as well as master planning for the campus.

As a small-town regional health care hub, VRMC’s challenge is creating a facility that will attract not only patients, but also medical staff. Because VRMC’s campus is land-locked, forethought to accommodate the next advances in technology and health care design are crucial.

Master planning for VRMC has included campus planning, departmental planning, and regional planning with the cooperation of other regional health care providers. DSGW has played a role in planning the following projects:

1. The hospital recently added a state-of-the-art 3T MRI, which will complement the mission to serve the health care needs of the region. A helipad and a remodel of the inpatient rehabilitation unit is also complete.

2. A Medical Arts building was constructed in 1998 to house 20 physicians, an outpatient rehab clinic and offices for independent care providers. The 80,000 sf facility has aided the hospital in recruiting health care staff.

3. Duluth Clinic - Virginia is a private clinic that relocated its Virginia site to the VRMC campus. In order to maintain the unique identities of each entity, the buildings appear to be separate, but are connected by underground tunnel.

4. The Iron Range Rehabilitation Center provides inpatient and outpatient services. Formerly located at the back of the campus, the facility moved to a more prominent location – a new 10,000 sf building adjacent to the hospital. In keeping with the focus on conserving space, the hospital acquired the vacated rehab facility for future use.

5. The hospital’s Inpatient RehabCare is in the process of a redesign with an emphasis on a comfortable, homey atmosphere. The eight-bed unit will feature one patient per room and a focus on patient and visitor comfort, plus amenities that allow the staff to function efficiently.