Terrell Vick escorted the final patient out of the old St. Vincent’s St. Clair Hospital, and Sean Tinney welcomed the first patients arriving at the new one. It was a fitting role for each to play — Vick as former president and COO and acting as Chief Transition Officer and Tinney as president of St. Vincent’s Rural Hospital Operations.
From their vantage points and through their responsibilities, they witnessed history being made, the page officially turning on Dec. 10, 2011.
“The preparation leading up to it was phenomenal,” said Tinney, who noted that the new hospital opened its doors to the Emergency Department at 6 that morning. The transfer of patients from the old facility began at 9 a.m. and the doors did not shut until the last patient was moved. “It was as smooth as anything I have been a part of.”
For Vick to witness the last patients leaving the old facility where he worked for so many years and Tinney witnessing the first patients coming into the new one he is overseeing, “it was meaningful for him, and it was meaningful for me,” Tinney said.
The move was like clockwork, Tinney said, giving credit to a host of team members. Neeysa Biddle, former COO of St. Vincent’s Health System, coordinated the move with Vick heading transition efforts. Regional Paramedical Services had five ambulances assisting with the move of patients. Dual labs and x-rays operated during the move, and associates and medical staff transitioned to a state-of-the-art electronic health record system.
The entire staff was oriented to the new hospital in the weeks leading up to the move, and when that day arrived, 50 Information Technology specialists reported for duty, ensuring that countless computers and a new order entry system was in place and working properly.
