Editorial: $10 million, growth necessary for hospital

The fundraising arm for Carondelet Health Network told Green Valley and Sahuarita residents last week they need to raise millions and experience more growth before construction will begin on a local hospital.

The Carondelet Foundation told community movers and shakers they need to raise $10 million to ensure completion of a 78-bed, $84 million hospital in Sahuarita by 2012.

That's a staggering figure the public at large might not have understood early in the decision-making process on whether a hospital was feasible.

Despite the challenge, we support construction of a hospital 100 percent.

We wish Green Valley residents did not have to drive to Tucson for major health-care procedures. We wish all of your specialists, primary-care physicians and emergency-care choices were here.

As far as we're concerned, we would like to have the grand opening tomorrow, if possible.

We encourage local residents to consider giving to the foundation as a sure way to improve the quality of life for the region dramatically. Be sure to specify that the money go exclusively to the Sahuarita hospital.

In support of the hospital, the town of Sahuarita has already pledged to set aside $200,000 a year for the next five years “to kick-start the project.”

“We would never have set the goal and made it public if we were not sure the support is there,” said Jannie Cox, founder and CEO of the foundation.

“There has been tremendous support for the campaign. We have made several presentations to community groups. We are quite encouraged.”

Carondelet relies on fundraising because it's a not-for-profit hospital. Every major project at Carondelet facilities in Tucson, notably St. Mary's and St. Joseph's, have included public components in the last decade.

The foundation raised $5 million to support a new wing at St. Mary's and an obstetrics center at St. Joseph's in the early 1990s. A 2005 campaign raised $10 million for a new emergency room at St. Mary's in 2005.

A small, $20 million hospital in Nogales is on the drawing board. The foundation has a goal to raise $3 million for the project. As of today, nearly $2 million has been pledged.

If Nogales can raise $2 million, we're confident Green Valley and Sahuarita can race toward $10 million.

Carondelet has confidence in the region. Even though the hospital will open with 78 beds, the company envisions it expanding to 325. That, in itself, answers whether the community will continue to grow.

“All of the plans are contingent on future growth of community,” Cox said. “If you gave us a check today for $84 million, we would not build it yet. The population and health-care-purchase habits would not be in place to build a hospital.

“We are going to gradually bring in primary-care physicians, specialists and urgent care first so community gets accustomed to purchasing health care right there,” Cox said.

Since the hospital would not break ground until 2011 at the earliest, there's no urgency to raise the $10 million immediately. Nonetheless, Carondelet wants to move ahead. We do, too.