BOARDMAN — A $31 million emergency room addition at Akron Children’s Hospital Mahoning Valley’s Beeghly Campus, set to open April 19, allows more patients to be seen in a timely manner — including for behavioral health, officials said.

ACH’s new ER, two years in the making, took about 18 months to construct after a four-to-six-month design phase.

Transparency and adaptability are key components behind the addition at 6505 Market St., hospital officials said.

“This brings us all back together as a team. To me, that’s invaluable,” said Nicole Madison, clinical nurse manager in ACH Mahoning Valley’s emergency department.

The facility, which was the subject of a tour Wednesday, is adjacent to the former ER that opened in 2008 and was designed for up to 80 visits per day. The new space expands ER capacity from 9,600 square feet to 34,700 square feet, a move recognizing that in recent years, more than double that number of patients were cared for daily in the department.

The new unit will have 23 treatment rooms — up from 17 — including three behavioral health flex rooms. Each one will be 800 square feet.

Also part of the facility will be two isolation rooms for those with infectious diseases, two rooms for resuscitation purposes, two triage rooms, radiology services with lower doses of radiation, full imaging services and easier access to ACH’s transport helicopter.

The expansion, which also has a pair of state-of-the-art nursing stations next to the rooms, also will be able to accommodate up to 200 patients per day during peak season. An estimated 105 employees will work in it, Madison noted.

Previously, ACH’s emergency room was “spatially limited,” she said, adding, “This will allow us to see more patients in a timely manner.”

Brian Lapolla, ACH’s vice president of facilities operations and logistics, noted that quality of care is largely responsible for the uptick in visits, which necessitates the need for the increased space. Specifically, ACH has the area’s sole pediatric emergency medicine physicians, he said.

BEHAVIORAL HEALTH

The three behavioral health rooms were designed with safety as a top priority, and they have “garage door-like” panels, behind which are needed equipment. When not in use, a door in front can be closed and locked, which makes them safe from being tampered with, Lapolla said.

The rooms also have heavy furniture and are ligature-free, meaning they were designed carefully to make it nearly impossible for patients to use anything to harm themselves, he said.

The facility overall will treat people from birth to age 21, though behavioral health services will be available to those up to 18, Madison said. Anyone over 18 who seeks such assistance can be stabilized, then transferred to an adult facility, she continued.

“This expanded emergency department is an investment in the Mahoning Valley community and builds on Akron Children’s commitment to bring care closer to home. The generosity of our donors, as well as the input from our patient families, employees and construction professionals ensure the infants, children and teens in this area have the access to care they deserve,” Paul Oliver, vice president of ACH’s Mahoning Valley Enterprises, said in a statement.

Oliver said that another crucial aspect of the new ER is that it can be adapted to serve as a full isolation unit in the event of another pandemic, for example.