Premier Health announces plans for Monroe health center

Atrium Medical Center plans to build a health center in Monroe, further expanding services and the number of primary care providers in Butler and Warren counties.

Premier Health, the hospital’s parent company, has purchased land at the northwest corner of Ohio 63 and North Main Street, where it announced Tuesday it will build a more than 19,000-square-foot facility housing a primary care practice, specialty physicians, and potentially other services.

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Atrium purchased the 16.3-acre property for $2.2 million on April 24, according to the Butler County Auditor’s Office records.

Atrium Medical Center has had a presence in Monroe “for quite some time,” predominantly with Monroe Medical Group, a Premier Physician Network practice, according to Michael Uhl, president of Atrium Medical Center.

“As that community has grown the demand for those primary care services and health care services in Monroe has been expanding, as well,” Uhl said. “This was really aligning with our mission and vision to grow healthier communities.”

The project is still in the planning stages. Next steps include selecting a developer to begin construction ahead of an anticipated 2018 opening.

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A date for starting construction at the site is yet to be determined and total cost for the project is still under consideration, Uhl said.

“We’re still finalizing what services what we’re going to put there,” he said. “It’s those other … services that we’re exploring that will get factored into obviously the cost.”

Once construction work is complete next year, Premier Health-Monroe Medical Center, a primary care practice and part of the Premier Physician Network, will relocate to the Cincinnati Dayton Road site from existing leased space, also in Monroe.

Plans to build a health center in Monroe join another recently announced project to build a new health center in Liberty Twp., which is also in the planning stages.

Monroe has seen its population grow 8 percent in the past five years, and a growing population means a greater need for increased health services, city officials said.

“The city values its partnership with Atrium Medical Center,” said Jennifer Patterson, Monroe’s assistant to the city manager. “They already serve our residents through their primary care operations, and we are excited to work with them on the new facility to bring even more medical and health services to our community.”

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Proximity to the patient population that Atrium serves and continuing to make it convenient for them to access its services were significant factors when it came to deciding where to construct the new health center, Uhl said.

“It’s not too far from where the current offices are and you look at where those residential growth communities are, it’s still along that west side of (Interstate) 75, so that’s where we wanted to stay to make it convenient for the patients,” Uhl said.

Monroe Medical Center has provided care to the Monroe and Middletown area for more than 70 years and has outgrown its present facility, according to Dr. Maurice Swanson, a primary care physician at the center.

“With the new building, we’re going to add additional providers to allow us to see more patients and serve our patients in more modern surroundings,” Swanson said.

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