BROOKHAVEN, GA – A ribbon cutting was held today to celebrate the official opening of the 180,000-square-foot, world-class Emory Musculoskeletal Institute, located in Emory’s Executive Park health innovation district in Brookhaven, Georgia. The new six-story building, with a focus on innovation, improving the patient experience and research, will continue to provide all musculoskeletal services in one convenient location for patients, and serve as the central hub supporting 10 regional offices ranging from LaGrange to Flowery Branch.
“The Emory Musculoskeletal Institute is a state-of-the-art facility ready to serve Georgians with exceptional clinical care, forward-thinking research and profound training opportunities for the next generation of clinicians,” says Emory University President Gregory L. Fenves. “The institute reflects Emory’s highest aspirations for patient-centric care and the role of research to improve lives.”
The comprehensive, patient- and family-centered facility is comprised of non-operative and surgical treatment expertise in orthopaedics and spine care, physical therapy and rehabilitation, imaging and ambulatory/outpatient surgery along with clinical and discovery research support space.
The building will serve as the home base for multiple centers of excellence and programs, including the Emory Spine Center, the Emory Joint Reconstruction Center, the Emory Foot/Ankle Center, the Emory Upper Extremity Program, the Emory Musculoskeletal Oncology Division and Emory Orthopaedic Physical Therapy. Clinical, translational and basic research programs can also be found in the Emory Musculoskeletal Research Center.
“The new building, with exceptional leadership, clinicians and scientists, will assist in attracting and retaining the best faculty, staff, trainees and researchers, while serving patients for both routine and complex orthopaedic treatment and care,” says Jonathan S. Lewin, MD, CEO of Emory Healthcare and executive vice president for health affairs for Emory University. “We expect the Emory Musculoskeletal Institute to be a destination musculoskeletal facility.”
To improve the patient experience, patients and visitors will find a large, nearly 800-space parking deck adjacent to the building with no charge for parking. Once inside the building, patients and visitors can engage in an interactive building web site with detailed information about the programs, care providers, research trials and even a digital artwork tour of the building. All patient exam rooms contain large LED monitors automatically providing information about the expertise of the specific physician being seen during their visit and the specific anatomy diagrams and even surgical procedure diagrams customized for each patient’s care plan.
When designing the building, sustainability played a major role in planning to reduce the carbon footprint of the building.
“Emory’s vision to be a model of transformative practices and sustainable choices at every level serves as the inspiration for the eco-friendly design of the building,” says Scott D. Boden, MD, director of the Emory Musculoskeletal Institute and professor and chair of the Department of Orthopaedics, Emory University School of Medicine. “Strategic lighting in the facility aims to reduce light pollution and helps Emory be a good neighbor to the surrounding community. More than 95 percent of stormwater and runoff water will be contained through a system of bio-swales, retention ponds and underground stormwater systems to enhance on-site water management.”
In addition, automatic tinting glass on the Southern, sunny side of the building will adjust based on ambient sunlight to control temperature and decrease energy consumption, and reduce the need for shades while maintaining an open feel to the space. The “smart building” has special monitors that trigger increased fresh air flow in populated areas based on studies that show improved comfort and cognitive function. Indoor water use has also been reduced by 30 percent.
The building has a custom smartphone app designed for its staff that allows touchless entry at all security points, automatic elevator calls, adjustment of room temperature and lighting scenes, and booking of conference rooms in real time. The design team is pursuing gold certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental (LEED) Design for the newly constructed facility.
The new Emory Musculoskeletal Institute also upholds Emory Healthcare’s motto, “Go where the players go.” Emory Healthcare serves as the official team health care provider for the Atlanta Braves, Falcons, Hawks, Dream, Georgia Tech, Emory and a host of high schools and youth and club team programs throughout the metro area. These players come to Emory for their health care needs.
“Emory Healthcare has been an integral partner in helping us grow our franchise with our best-in-class training facility, the Emory Sports Medicine Complex,” says Steve Koonin, CEO of the Atlanta Hawks & State Farm Arena. “We are proud to support Emory Healthcare, a local institution with a world-class reputation, who is responsible for providing the most advanced health care to both our players and the entire greater Atlanta community.”
“We want to congratulate Emory Healthcare on the opening of its new Musculoskeletal Institute,” says Rich McKay, president and CEO of the Atlanta Falcons. “This new facility is another advancement toward innovative technology in orthopaedics and truly providing the best care in our city. We know the facility will be special in all regards.”
“This innovative facility with attention to every last detail is yet another example of why we trust the Emory Healthcare team with the health of our athletes and staff,” says Derek Schiller, president and CEO of the Atlanta Braves.
This new facility, in combination with the Emory Sports Medicine Complex next door and 10 regional offices — in Decatur, Dunwoody, Flowery Branch, Johns Creek, LaGrange, Smyrna, Spivey Station, Stonecrest, Sugarloaf and Tucker — allows Emory clinicians to care for even more patients throughout the region and beyond.