Davie County Hospital /Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center has scheduled two community forums to discuss the proposed hospital in eastern Davie County.
The forums will be held at 7 p.m. April 17 at the First United Methodist Church, located at 310 West Main Street in Mocksville and at 7 p.m. April 24 at Hillsdale Baptist Church, located at 4815 US Hwy 158 in Advance.
“We invite the community to join us in a discussion about our plans for the hospital,” said Donny Lambeth, interim president of NC Baptist Hospital. Refreshments will be served.
Under plans submitted to the State for approval, Wake Forest Baptist will build a replacement for Davie County Hospital that would cost approximately $100 million. The four-story building would have approximately 167,000 square-feet. The hospital would have 50 beds, 10 observation beds, two operating rooms, an endoscopy room, a minor procedure room and a 24-hour emergency room.
The proposed hospital will be located on Route 801 at the I-40 Interchange in an area designated for commercial development. Construction has started on re-building the interchange and widening Route 801.
At the forums, speakers will discuss the hospital and the urgent and primary care center in Mocksville. Construction on the center is scheduled to begin in May.
“Community support is essential for the State to approve our application,” said Lambeth. “The support we received in the fall for the original campaign was tremendous and made an impact on the State. We trust the community will step forward and support this application in the same way as the original application last fall.”
Davie County Hospital and Wake Forest also will be seeking letters of support from the community. “Letters are important to the State in making its decision,” said Lambeth. Letters can be emailed to Lambeth-DCH@wfubmc.edu or mailed to him at Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157. The deadline is April 30.
The State has scheduled the public hearing at 2 pm. May 12 at Cornerstone Christian Church, 1585 NC Hwy 801 North. “We ask that residents mark that date on their calendar now,” Lambeth said. “The turnout last fall was tremendous, and we need another big turnout for this hearing.”
Davie County Hospital will remain open until the new hospital is occupied. The hospital opened in 1956 and is not adequate to meet today’s healthcare needs. Urgent and emergency visits are up 12 percent and admissions 93 percent since Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center began managing Davie County Hospital in 2002.
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Media Contact: Jonnie Rohrer, jrohrer@wfubmc.edu, at 336 716.6972.
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center is an academic health system comprised of North Carolina Baptist Hospital, Brenner Children’s Hospital and Wake Forest University Health Sciences, which operates the University’s School of Medicine and Piedmont Triad Research Park. The system comprises 1,154 acute care, rehabilitation and long-term care beds and has been ranked as one of “America’s Best Hospitals” by U.S. News & World Report since 1993. Wake Forest Baptist is ranked 32nd in the Nation by America’s Top Doctors for the number of its doctors considered best by their peers. The institution ranks in the top third in funding by the National Institutes of Health and 4th in the Southeastern United States in revenues from its licensed intellectual property.
Media Relations
Main Number: news@wakehealth.edu, 336-713-4587