Brownwood News – Braving the cold, several leaders in the Brownwood community gathered to attend a groundbreaking ceremony for Hendrick Health System’s new medical office building at 10 a.m. on January 18th. Hendrick Medical Plaza will be located adjacent to Hendrick Surgery Center.

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Draco Miller, Brownwood Mayor Pro Tem, began the opening remarks for the ceremony.

“Ground breaking symbolizes growth and expansion for our city, which Hendrick’s Medical Center has done that and will hopefully continue to do that here,” Miller said.

Hendrick Health System CEO Tim Lancaster also spoke during the ceremony, explaining the positive reception from the Brownwood community for the recently opened surgery center encouraged Hendrick to continue to expand their services.

In 2016, Hendrick held a ground breaking for the surgery center, which officially opened in April 2017. The center provides outpatient surgeries with local surgeons as well as specialists from Abilene as needed: cardiologist Dr. John McClish, endocrinologist Dr. Figueroa Flores, and two plastic surgeons.

“Because the surgery center has been so well received we decided this would be a great time for us to build a medical office building and expand some of the other things we want to be doing,” Lancaster said as he addressed the crowd gathered in a large tent near the building site for the new medical office.

The 20,500 square-foot building, connected to the surgery center by a large walkway, will include multiple physician offices, radiological services (X-ray and ultrasound), physical therapy services, a laboratory draw station and a classroom for educational purposes.

“At Hendrick we’re very committed to providing education for people that have issues,” Lancaster said, emphasizing on the need for education for people living with diabetes diagnosis.

Initially, 18 employees will be hired to work in the new facility, with a potential increase to 34 employees.

Locally, both Michael Cloy, Physician’s Assistant, and Tammy McCullough, Nurse Practitioner, will be two of the first medical providers offering their services in the new facility. Michael Cloy was present during the ground breaking ceremony and was invited to speak.

“It is exciting,” Cloy said. “What they’re bringing to Brownwood with this facility will not have been seen before,” he continued, noting the recent construction by Hendrick was the first of note for the community in the last 15 years.

Paul Waldrop, longtime Brownwood resident and business owner, serves on the Hendrick Medical Center Board of Trustees. Waldrop also spoke during the ceremony.

“The partnership between Hendrick and Brownwood continues to grow,” Waldrop said. “Competition is a great thing, it encourages us to improve our services and improve our pricing.”

Waldrop explained Hendrick Health System’s not-for-profit business model.

“The things I find so unique about Hendrick, first we’re a non-profit organization, and rather than pay our profits out to shareholders, we’re able to reinvest that money into the community we serve in projects such as this,” he said. “Second, we are a Christian-based organization, our employees view their job as more than a job. It’s a mission that they’re involved in daily.”

Additional land has been purchased by Hendrick Health System around the surgery center and medical plaza for possible future medical development. Construction costs for the new building are estimated at $6.5 million.

The completion date of the new facility is tentatively scheduled for January 2019.