Center for Rural Health Facility Construction

The University of Kentucky Center for Excellence in Rural Health was established by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth to address the unique and growing problems of rural health. These problems include chronic shortages of health professionals, poor health status of many rural Kentuckians relating to poverty and limited access to health care, and the importance of health services to local economy. Commitment to address these issues in a serious and comprehensive manner was symbolized by the physical location of the Center in the city of Hazard, which is in the heart of the Appalachian coalfields, one of the poorest rural areas of the country . The successes the Center has enjoyed stem from a unique synergy among programs which serve to: . . Educate place-committed health professionals; . Stimulate rural communities to take control of their health care services; . Demonstrate new models of service delivery; . Research, develop and advocate policies advantageous to rural areas; . Coordinate and focus statewide rural health interests; . Raise public awareness of rural health issues through information dissemination; and . Provide technical assistance, which strengthens existing services and translates research findings into programs that allow communities to improve the health status of their citizens. The Center provides educational programs which meet all standards and produce exceptional graduates, more of whom locate in rural areas than those from any other program in the country. The Center is probably unique as an academic unit in the heavy emphasis it places on community service and collaboration. Educational programs offer an exceptional opportunity to work with community programs at the Center to provide service-learning experiences for students and opportunities for collaboration between educational programs at the Center and other educational programs across the Commonwealth, the nation and in other nations. Building The proposed facility will house approximately 57,000 GSF on four floors and will be located adjacent to the campus of the Appalachian Regional Hospital (ARH). The building will be totally self-contained and will operate independently of the adjacent hospital. Parking is available around the building and in the adjacent ARH parking lots. The project includes a covered canopy drop off for patients at the main entrance. The project will include an outpatient family practice clinic and dental clinic on the first floor. Classrooms and class labs will be on the second, third, and fourth floor with faculty offices located on the third and fourth floor. Student spaces include study rooms, computer rooms, a lounge, support services, and a learning center. The student-learning center is located on the third floor. Seminar and conference rooms are located on the fourth floor and are easily accessible. The design and specified material comply with fire and life safety codes for rated partitions and slabs, egress paths, travel distances, smoke control, rated stairwells, sprinklers, and a UL listed fire alarm system. Interior finishes include either vinyl composition floor tile or carpet, full height gypsum board and metal stud walls, solid core doors, and a combination of gypsum board and suspended acoustical ceilings. The exterior building, materials will be brick, cast stone and glass. Two passenger elevators and two emergency stairwells will serve the building. A proximity card reader system will provide access for students in academic areas while keeping patient areas and records secure. The heating and cooling system will be a hydronic system utilizing natural gas boilers and water-cooling towers. Telecommunications wiring will be run to all rooms and an emergency generator will provide emergency lighting.