The Corning Incorporated Foundation has donated $1.5 million toward a new, expanded Guthrie Cancer Center at the future Corning Hospital.
Guthrie officials announced the grant Wednesday morning as they kicked off the public phase of a fundraising campaign for the $146 million hospital project. Ground was broken in April 2012 at the 67-acre site in East Corning, and the hospital is expected to open in July 2014.
The current Guthrie Cancer Center in downtown Corning ― which handles about 12,000 patient visits annually ― is in a 5,800-square-foot former grocery store on Denison Parkway.
It’s extremely cramped, and “by no means an ideal location to be delivering care,” said Dr. Philip Lowry, Guthrie Health’s chief of medical oncology services.
The construction of a new cancer center as part of the new Corning Hospital will bring a lot of upgrades, Lowry said.
For starters, the 18,600-square-foot facility will have triple the space. But it’s not just about elbow room ― the new facility will mean more privacy and a nicer atmosphere for patients, he said.
The new location at Interstate 86, Exit 48, in East Corning also means easier access and more parking, he said.
The Guthrie center, to be located on the ground floor of the new hospital, will have a separate entrance, but will be connected to the hospital, making it easy for patients to get services, such as Xrays, at the hospital, Lowry said.
There will also be a “major investment in new equipment,” including a new radiation oncology machine with a state-of-the-art accelerator, Lowry said.
Guthrie’s mission is to provide the level of care that patients often traveled to Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester ― or even New York City and Philadelphia ― to get, Lowry said.
“There are great ivory towers, but ultimately, great cancer care should be where the patients are, rather than making them go to major institutions located in big cities,” he said.
The cancer center in Corning is one of Guthrie’s two hubs for cancer treatment, along with a facility at its main campus in Sayre.
In deciding to award the $1.5 million grant, the staff and board members of the Corning Incorporated Foundation believed the new cancer center will have a tremendous impact on the health of the community, said Foundation President Karen Martin.
The foundation has supported Corning Hospital for more than 50 years, Martin said.
The foundation has given funding for an expansion of the hospital’s physical plant, the establishment of a cardiac care unit, the installation of a hospital ambulance communication system, a major hospital expansion in 1987, the purchase of various diagnostic equipment, and a children’s obesity initiative, among other things.
The “silent phase” of the capital campaign ― the first since the ’87 expansion ― has been under way for about seven months, and has already raised about $3 million, said Corning Hospital board member Tom Tranter, who is chairing the fundraising drive. That includes $375,000 from staff and physicians at Corning Hospital, he added.
Wednesday marked the beginning of the public phase, and the overall goal is $4 million, Tranter said.
Guthrie, a nonprofit, is using a combination of cash, financing and donations to fund the new hospital.
While Medicare reimbursements will recoup some of the costs, the reimbursements can only go toward “baseline” facilities, explained Dr. Joseph Scopelliti, Guthrie’s president and CEO. The capital campaign is key because the funds can be used for enhanced features that will help make the new hospital a top-notch facility, Scopelliti said.
The future two-story, 232,000-square-foot hospital will include 65 private patient rooms and cuttingedge medical equipment and technology, Guthrie said.
For information about donating, go to www.guthrie. org or call 937-7259.
The Corning Incorporated Foundation has donated $1.5 million toward a new, expanded Guthrie Cancer Center at the future Corning Hospital.
Guthrie officials announced the grant Wednesday morning as they kicked off the public phase of a fundraising campaign for the $146 million hospital project. Ground was broken in April 2012 at the 67-acre site in East Corning, and the hospital is expected to open in July 2014.
The current Guthrie Cancer Center in downtown Corning ― which handles about 12,000 patient visits annually ― is in a 5,800-square-foot former grocery store on Denison Parkway.
It’s extremely cramped, and “by no means an ideal location to be delivering care,” said Dr. Philip Lowry, Guthrie Health’s chief of medical oncology services.
The construction of a new cancer center as part of the new Corning Hospital will bring a lot of upgrades, Lowry said.
For starters, the 18,600-square-foot facility will have triple the space. But it’s not just about elbow room ― the new facility will mean more privacy and a nicer atmosphere for patients, he said.
The new location at Interstate 86, Exit 48, in East Corning also means easier access and more parking, he said.
The Guthrie center, to be located on the ground floor of the new hospital, will have a separate entrance, but will be connected to the hospital, making it easy for patients to get services, such as Xrays, at the hospital, Lowry said.
There will also be a “major investment in new equipment,” including a new radiation oncology machine with a state-of-the-art accelerator, Lowry said.
Guthrie’s mission is to provide the level of care that patients often traveled to Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester ― or even New York City and Philadelphia ― to get, Lowry said.
“There are great ivory towers, but ultimately, great cancer care should be where the patients are, rather than making them go to major institutions located in big cities,” he said.
The cancer center in Corning is one of Guthrie’s two hubs for cancer treatment, along with a facility at its main campus in Sayre.
In deciding to award the $1.5 million grant, the staff and board members of the Corning Incorporated Foundation believed the new cancer center will have a tremendous impact on the health of the community, said Foundation President Karen Martin.
The foundation has supported Corning Hospital for more than 50 years, Martin said.
The foundation has given funding for an expansion of the hospital’s physical plant, the establishment of a cardiac care unit, the installation of a hospital ambulance communication system, a major hospital expansion in 1987, the purchase of various diagnostic equipment, and a children’s obesity initiative, among other things.
The “silent phase” of the capital campaign ― the first since the ’87 expansion ― has been under way for about seven months, and has already raised about $3 million, said Corning Hospital board member Tom Tranter, who is chairing the fundraising drive. That includes $375,000 from staff and physicians at Corning Hospital, he added.
Wednesday marked the beginning of the public phase, and the overall goal is $4 million, Tranter said.
Guthrie, a nonprofit, is using a combination of cash, financing and donations to fund the new hospital.
While Medicare reimbursements will recoup some of the costs, the reimbursements can only go toward “baseline” facilities, explained Dr. Joseph Scopelliti, Guthrie’s president and CEO. The capital campaign is key because the funds can be used for enhanced features that will help make the new hospital a top-notch facility, Scopelliti said.
The future two-story, 232,000-square-foot hospital will include 65 private patient rooms and cuttingedge medical equipment and technology, Guthrie said.
For information about donating, go to www.guthrie. org or call 937-7259.
