RE: square footage

[Guest guest]

Matt,

We reconstructed the PT/OT dept about 14 years ago, planning for the future

growth of the 2 depts. Also planning for the possibility of adding a therapy

pool with access to it from our area.

We have grown plenty over the years, increasing services, increasing staff

therapists, AND adding a 20 by 30 warm water pool with locker facilities. We

have no more room to access so we recently re-evaluated our current space. This

exercise allowed us to assess current usage of specific modalities and services

and try to create as many multiple use areas as possible. For example, within

one treatment room we combined mechanical traction and our Jordan lights for UV

treatment of psoriasis. Both modalities have been used sporadically, but used

fairly often. We now have a room used more often, controlled by scheduling, and

have created more available time in another treatment room, (the room that

housed our UV lights).

So the lesson learned was to try to create multiple use spaces, and for us,

considering cross-discipline uses, to truly maximize all space utilization.

Other insights: space for staff to discuss problems with patients- " off stage "

-away from any patients to hear or see.

More storage than you think you will need.

More work stations for staff than you think you

will need in 5 years, (include designated space for students)

Expanded waiting room (we forgot about the

number of drivers that stay and wait for our patients and therefore

underestimated the need for a more spacious waiting area)

Make sure you have enough private treatment

rooms with proper ventilation for the services you provide...women's health,

vestibular, for us UV phototherapy, where the doors will need to be closed.

Keep some wide open space for functional

training, lifting, catching/throwing if necessary, and functional outcomes

testing...TUG, etc.

Consider the size and weight capacity for

equipment...bariatric mat tables and parallel bars are larger than traditional

ones.

Hope this is helpful.

Dan , PT

PT Manager

Vernon Memorial Hospital

Viroqua, WI 54665

dnelson@...

From: PTManager [mailto:PTManager ] On Behalf Of

Matt Dvorak

Sent: Wednesday, February 23, 2011 6:08 PM

To: PTmanager

Subject: square footage

Group,

I am looking for some suggestions on how many sq/ft I should plan for our

current outpatient PT department to move. There are plans being developed to

move us into a newly constructee building, and I would like to plan accordingly

for growth. I have an outpatient PT department staffed by 4.2 FTEs which is " off

sight " from the hospital. We also cover inpatient visits at our hospital

facility, but these patient treatments will continue to be seen in the hospital.

We do an average of 350 outpatient visits/month and 1250 oupatient units/month.

These are primarily orthopedic patients with a smattering of peds, geriatrics,

etc. We have seen a growth in our outpatient business of 13%-15% each year in

units/visits, and I expect this growth to slow to 5%-7% in the next few years

with an increase in staff of another full FTE within this next year. We

currently have 3325 sq/ft with 3 treatment rooms in our outpatient department

and we are feeling " cramped " in this area. Any suggestions on total square

footage, # of treatment rooms, gym space size, storage, etc. would be

appreciated. thanks in advance for advice.

Matt Dvorak, PT

Yankton, SD