GEORGETOWN, Del. - Healthcare network ChristianaCare is looking to expand its presence in Delaware with a new health campus in Georgetown.
ChristianaCare says the new campus is part of an effort to provide increased outpatient and emergency care in Sussex County. Officials at ChristianaCare describe the area as both rapidly growing and medically underserved.
The health system announced on Feb. 12 that it had submitted a Notice of Intent to the Delaware Health Resources Board for a 42,000-square-foot campus on DuPont Boulevard in Georgetown.
The proposed campus, according to ChristianaCare, includes a health center offering primary care, specialty care, behavioral health, and other outpatient services. A “neighborhood hospital” featuring eight emergency beds and eight inpatient beds, a model the system says is similar to its West Grove campus in Pennsylvania, is also included in the plans.
"Primary care, specialty care, behavioral health services, as well as other diagnostic services such as imaging, x-rays, CT scan," Vinay Maheshwari, Physician Executive for Growth and Strategic Partnerships, outlined to WBOC Friday.
ChristianaCare President and CEO Dr. Janice E. Nevin said Sussex County has a growing and aging population and is designated by the Health Resources & Services Administration as a Medically Underserved Area, adding the project is meant to bring care closer to where it’s needed.
“This new campus will help close gaps in access by bringing high-quality, equitable and more convenient care directly into the community that needs it most,” Nevin said. “Our goal is simple: ensure that every Delawarean can access the care they need, in the right place at the right time.”
ChristianaCare says it’s partnering with Emerus Holdings, Inc. for the neighborhood hospital component, describing Emerus as the nation’s leading developer of the model and noting it has partnered in operating more than 45 acute care facilities nationwide. Emerus CEO Vic Schmerbeck said the company is “proud to continue” its partnership with ChristianaCare to expand healthcare services in Sussex County.
"What we've heard from members of the community is that they've had challenges with accessing care. They've also had long delays in doing so or had significant travel time to do so," Maheshwari said.
The health system estimates the Georgetown campus will cost $65.1 million and is expected to open in late 2028. ChristianaCare says it already offers services in Sussex County including primary care, specialty care, virtual care, and home health and hospice, but notes Sussex and Kent counties are projected to see an 8% population increase by 2030, with a significant rise in residents 65 and older. Officials with the health system say they will continue exploring other opportunities to expand access to care elsewhere in Delaware, including Kent County.
Georgetown Mayor Bill West told WBOC Friday he is excited for the project. He said Georgetown has been looking to bring a hospital to the area for around 7 years, and is glad ChristianaCare is stepping in to do so.
"If you look where Bayhealth is up in Milford, where Beebe is at the beach, and Nanticoke over in Seaford, this middle corridor has nothing," West said. "I used to ride on the ambulance. I used to drive the ambulance. When you pick up a patient, and you had to take them to one of the facilities, it was sometimes life threatening because you had to do CPR until you got to the hospital."
West also noted that the hospital's planned proximity to attractions like 'Sports at the Beach' is ideal.
"That's drawing kids from New York and Connecticut in Maine to play baseball. If a kid gets hurt, it can be hard to direct family members up Route 9 or where to go," West said. "This is going to make things easier and quicker, and make response times a lot sooner."
