Wynn Hospital transition: What to know

The Wynn Hospital in downtown Utica is just days away from opening and changes are afoot. As St. Elizabeth Medical Center at 2209 Genesee St. in Utica and Faxton-St. Luke’s Healthcare at 1656 Champlin Ave. in New Hartford both prepare to close, officials with Mohawk Valley Health System (MVHS) are reminding the public of vital information they should be aware of during the transition.

In a letter recently sent out to the community, MVHS officials outlines several important pieces of information for the public to know as they phase out of the two existing hospitals and officials opens the Wynn Hospital.

Transition of services

All elective surgeries at both existing hospitals stopped on Oct. 20 at 3 p.m.

On Thursday, Oct. 26 at 6 a.m. The emergency department St. Elizabeth’s will stop receiving EMS patients and defer them to St. Luke’s, with the exception of patients experiencing cardiac and trauma needs. Walk-in and drive-up pa

tients will still be treated at the St. Elizabeth emergency department until Sunday, Oct. 29.

Wynn Hospital opening, St. Elizabeth’s/St. Luke’s closing

On Sunday, Oct. 29 at 6 a.m., both St. Elizabeth’s and St. Luke’s will shut down, bringing all previously provided emergency and acute care services to the Wynn Hospital at 111 Hospital Dr. in Utica.

At the two hospitals close, the doors to the Wynn Hospital will open for all inpatient and outpatient services that the two other hospitals previously provided. All EMS patients will then be

directed to the Wynn Hospital.

At 7 a.m. on Sunday, inpatient transfers from St. Elizabeth’s and St. Luke’s to the Wynn Hospital will begin. MVHS officials anticipate the patient transfer process to take around 12 hours.

From Sunday to Monday, all remaining equipment from St. Elizabeth’s and St. Lukes that is planned for reuse will be relocated to the Wynn Hospital.

While both St. Elizabeth’s and St. Luke’s will shut down on Sunday, there will still be some temporary and permanent services that will continue to be provided at the hospital properties.

The Center for Rehabilitation and Continuing Care Services at St. Lukes will continue to remain open, while the St. Luke’s Professional

Office Building will continue to provide services until MVHS Medical Office Building across the Wynn Hospital completes construction.

The St. Elizabeth College of Nursing, the Sleep Center, Health Information Management/Medical Records and the MVHS Finance/Billing Office will remain on the St. Elizabeth campus.

As construction on the Oneida County Parking Garage is expected to continue until next spring, free valet parking will be offered for patients and visitors of the new Wynn Hospital in downtown Utica.

The Wynn Hospital will offer a variety of parking options in the near future for patients, visitors, and its employees, but will be limited to only a few options upon its opening on Sunday.

As of Oct. 29, there will be parking along State Street across the hospital, with one lot reserved for employees and another lot reserved for visitors. Officials with MVHS confirmed that it is a half-mile walk from the lots on State Street, down Columbia Street, up Broadway, and into the hospital’s main entrance.

For a better ease of access to the hospital and to accommodate those who are not able to walk the distance, the hospital will provide free valet service for all patients and visitors until the Oneida County Parking Garage is complete and ready for use.

Construction of the new parking garage is expected to be complete by March 2024. MVHS officials have also confirmed that the valet parking will remain after the parking garage is complete, as long as the service is being utilized.

While the Mohawk Valley is losing two hospitals and gaining a new one, patients across the Mohawk Valley are reminded of the additional healthcare facilities across the region, including Slocum-Dickson Medical Group at 1729 Burrstone Road in New Hartford, Rome Health Hospital at 1500 N. James St. in Rome, Oneida Health Hospital at 321 Genesee St. in Oneida, Bassett Medical Center at 1 Atwell Road in Cooperstown, and Little Falls Hospital at 140 Burwell St. in Little Falls.