Posted on July 1, 2019

(Story provided by Inside Booster. Click here for full issue.)

North Side healthcare provider Advocate Aurora Health has filed an application with the state to open a nearly $40 million behavioral health and pediatric development center across from its Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center and hospital, centered on Wellington Ave. between Halsted and Sheffield. An existing building at 901 W. Wellington would be demolished under this proposal and a new one would replace it. Construction is expected to get underway in late Summer or Fall and be completed by June 2021.

According to several media reports they have proposed building a four-story, 51,969-square-foot outpatient facility at 901 W. Wellington Ave. News of the plans are based on a May 23 application to the Illinois Health Facilities & Services Review Board. The application calls for a scheduled vote on the application and project at their Aug. 6 meeting.

According to Crain’s Chicago, the project involves moving Advocate’s outpatient behavioral health services and pediatric development program from 3040 N. Wilton Ave. to the new Counseling and Pediatric Development Center nearby. The site previously housed its Creticos Cancer Center, which was moved in 2015 to an outpatient facility on the north side of the Medical Center. The project will be funded by a combination of cash and securities, and bond issues, according to the application.

According to the application, the fast-growing behavioral health and pediatric development service lines require a space that can support additional patient volume, as well as more than 40 clinicians trained in cognitive behavioral therapy, trauma-informed treatment and other therapies.

One building feature outlined in the application is a “clearer separation of patients” to keep “louder, highly active (individuals) from those needing a quiet, secluded environment.” Additionally, the pediatric development department, which treats many patients on the autism spectrum, would include rooms with one-way glass and audio capacity so families could observe clinicians and learn caregiving skills.

In a June 3 letter to the state board, Shirley Ryan Ability-Lab’s Senior Vice President and Chief Clinical Operating Officer Peggy Kirk said the hospital supports Advocate’s proposal. The hospitals have partnered since 2004 to provide inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, the letter says.