HCA Healthcare has committed $157 million to modernize Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, New Hampshire. The plan funds a new Nashua emergency room, a central energy plant, elevator and infrastructure work, and an expanded emergency department that serves the greater Manchester region.
Catholic Medical Center in Manchester, New Hampshire has entered a multiyear round of facility upgrades funded by parent company HCA Healthcare, which set aside $157 million for capital work across the hospital campus. HCA, a hospital operator based in Nashville with sites across the country, acquired the medical center about a year ago following a period of financial difficulty.
Much of the money addresses aging building systems. A $27 million program spread over five years covers electrical work, HVAC and energy improvements, modernization of nine elevators, expanded fire safety measures, and replacement of windows and roofing. A separate $43 million central energy plant, which houses the equipment that generates heating, cooling, and backup power for a facility, broke ground in February.
Emergency and cardiac care carry a large portion of the plan. A $16 million freestanding emergency room in Nashua is scheduled to open this summer, while the main emergency department will grow from 24 treatment bays to 31. Earlier this year, crews completed a $2.7 million electrophysiology lab renovation supporting procedures that correct heart rhythm disorders. An upgrade to the pneumatic tube system that shuttles supplies and specimens rounds out the interior work.
Chief Executive John Skevington credited HCA ownership for the scale of the commitment and characterized it as the largest hospital facility investment he has seen during his years in the state.
HCA runs a wider New Hampshire network that includes Parkland Medical Center in Derry, Portsmouth Regional Hospital, and Frisbie Memorial Hospital in Rochester, plus freestanding emergency rooms in Plaistow, Dover, and Seabrook and an urgent care center in Bedford.