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Groundbreaking for new Stevensville medical center expected this fall

Stevi Med Center site.jpg
Posted at 11:16 PM, Jun 07, 2021
and last updated 2021-06-08 10:16:10-04

STEVENSVILLE — Administrators at Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital say they'll be breaking ground on the new Bitterroot Health-Stevensville facility this fall.

The hospital announced plans for the 21,000 square foot center last week, the culmination of a couple of years of planning following a 2019 analysis into public demand for expanded medical offerings in the Bitterroot.

"The feedback we received that there was a significant need in North Valley for healthcare services in this location," explained MDMH Regional Director Pete Dunn during a visit to the site Monday. "The goal here is to provide accessible healthcare to Stevensville and surrounding communities. So, Primary Care, specialty clinics, as well as rehabilitation services, diagnostic imaging, and lab services, as well as housing ambulance."

The medical center will be erected on an 11-acre site just off US Highway 93 and south of Kootenai Creek Road. The property is not only one of the few large vacant sites with that direct highway access at the Wye in Stevensville, but it has a sweeping view of St. Mary's Peak, which will be featured in the building's orientation. That will give patients in the waiting rooms and rehab areas a sense of "openness".

In addition to having state-of-the-art facilities, Dunn says Bitterroot Health-Stevensville will also tap into the growing trend to telemedicine.

"Residents in North Valley will be able to come in and see their provider one-on-one. Or, we will be offering Telehealth services where they can, from home, we can connect, the providers can connect with them and make it easy and do a lot of visits that way," Dunn told MTN News. "And we're kind of building the facility in such a way that it can support both avenues of providing medicine there."

Since Stevensville doesn't offer sewer and water services in that area, Dunn says the medical center will use a well and septic drain field. The project is still in the early design phase and MDMH will be seeking public input at marketing@mdmh.org.