Spectrum Health Prepares to Open Additional Hospital Beds Inside Grand Valley State University Cook-DeVos Center for Health Sciences

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., March 24, 2020 – Grand Valley State University and Spectrum Health are working together to serve the needs of our community during this unprecedented public health situation. The two organizations have been planning and preparing for many years in the event Spectrum Health needed to utilize space inside GVSU’s Cook-DeVos Center for Health Sciences as contingency space and additional hospital beds. If needed, the space can accommodate up to 250 hospital beds.

“We remain committed to adapting, preparing and finding new solutions to ensure the health, safety and appropriate care for our community in the midst of this critical and rapidly evolving health crisis,” said Tina Freese Decker, President & CEO, Spectrum Health. “This arrangement provides contingency medical space, should we need it. We are grateful for our community partners like GVSU who are coming together in remarkable ways to support our teams and our patients.”

The arrangement takes advantage of contingency planning between the two organizations, which is part of their combined emergency preparedness measures. While the space requires State of Michigan approval, the organizations are preparing now so the additional beds can be available quickly. If needed, the space would accommodate low acuity medical patients.

“Grand Valley State University has resources to help fight this virus, and we are pleased to work with Spectrum Health,” said Grand Valley President Philomena V. Mantella. “We will provide space and any resources we have to assist our state and country.”

About Spectrum Health
Spectrum Health System, a not-for-profit, integrated health system, is committed to improving the health and wellness of our communities. We live our mission every day with 31,000 compassionate professionals, 4,500 medical staff experts, 3,300 committed volunteers and a health plan serving 1 million members. Our talented physicians and caregivers are privileged to offer a full continuum of care and wellness services to our communities through 14 hospitals, including Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, 155 ambulatory sites and telehealth offerings. We pursue health care solutions for today and tomorrow that diversify our offerings. Locally-governed and based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, our health system provided $585 million in community benefit in fiscal year 2019. Thanks to the generosity of our communities, we received $30 million in philanthropy in the most recent fiscal year to support research, academics, innovation and clinical care. Spectrum Health has been recognized as one of the nation’s 15 Top Health Systems by Truven Health Analytics®, part of IBM Watson Health^TM.

About Grand Valley State University

Grand Valley State University attracts more than 24,000 students with high-quality programs and state-of-the-art facilities. Grand Valley is a comprehensive university serving students from all across Michigan and dozens of other states and foreign countries. Grand Valley offers 94 undergraduate and 42 graduate degree programs and has campuses in Allendale, Grand Rapids and Holland. The university offers programming and classes from outreach centers in Battle Creek, Detroit and Traverse City; the Robert B. Annis Water Resources Institute and the Muskegon Innovation Hub are located in Muskegon. The university is dedicated to individual student achievement, going beyond the traditional classroom experience, with research opportunities and business partnerships.

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Contact:
Ellen Bristol
External Affairs Manager
Office: 616.391.4399
Mobile: 616.581.6474
Email: ellen.bristol@corewellhealth.org

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