By Lindsey Coulter
VANCOUVER, Wash. — PeaceHealth and Lifepoint Rehabilitation will soon embark on the design and construction of a new 67,000-square-foot inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Vancouver. The organizations’ Certificate of Need for the project was recently approved by state regulatory officials, clearing the way for development of a new standalone facility with capacity for 50 inpatient beds. The new facility will be constructed on the site of the now-closed PeaceHealth Memorial Urgent Care facility. Demolition of the existing building will likely begin in the fall, with projected completion of the new rehabilitation facility expected in mid-2027. The project will also allow the nearby PeaceHealth Southwest facility to shift its 14 existing beds to the new standalone facility and will significantly increase access to inpatient rehabilitation services in the region.
“We are excited about moving this partnership forward,” said Cherelle Montanye, PeaceHealth Southwest chief hospital executive, in a statement. “Both PeaceHealth and Lifepoint Rehabilitation share a strong commitment of delivering high-quality care, and the construction of this hospital helps ensure we are meeting the needs of our community without them having to travel out of the area for care.”
The new inpatient rehabilitation hospital marks the second joint-venture partnership between PeaceHealth and Lifepoint Rehabilitation, which is a business unit of Lifepoint Health, based in Brentwood, Tenn. The two entities are also developing a new 42-bed acute care inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Springfield, Ore., that is set to open next year. The new Vancouver facility will be majority owned by PeaceHealth and will provide intensive nursing, physical, occupational and speech pathology services for adults recovering from conditions such as stroke, neurological disease, brain or spinal cord injury, and other debilitating illnesses or injuries. Lifepoint Rehabilitation will manage the facility’s day-to-day operations.
“Receiving regulatory approval for this project is further confirmation of the community need for increased access to specialized rehabilitation care,” said David Stark, chief operating officer of Lifepoint Rehabilitation, in a statement. “This facility will enable us to care for more medically complex rehabilitation patients and serve patients in a facility wholly dedicated to their recovery, and we look forward to breaking ground on this transformative new chapter.”
Lifepoint Rehabilitation often collaborates with healthcare partners to develop inpatient rehabilitation facilities and hospital-based rehabilitation units, medical/surgical and outpatient therapy settings that offer rehabilitation management and services to help patients recover conditions such as strokes, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, orthopedic injuries, neurological conditions, amputations and trauma. PeaceHealth, based in Vancouver, Wash., is a not-for-profit Catholic health system that serves communities in Washington, Oregon and Alaska. Upon completion, the new PeaceHealth facility will join Lifepoint Rehabilitation’s network of more than 45 inpatient rehabilitation facilities across the country.
