Renovation begins at Yokota's hospital

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Desiree Economides
  • 374th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan --  Beginning Jan. 4, 2012, the Yokota base hospital will undergo a 33-month, $24 million project designed to make seismic upgrades to the entire facility, completely renovate the 1st and 4th floors, and upgrade the building's heating, electrical and water systems.

During the renovation, patients will still be able to be seen by their care providers, but office locations will be moving.

"Yokota's hospital was built in 1973 and has had little more than necessary maintenance over the years," said James Farmer, 374th Medical Group facility manager. "This project will update the finishes on the 1st and 4th floors to include walls, ceilings, doors and floor surfaces, new furniture and medical equipment."

"During the renovation, a seismic upgrade will be conducted on all four floors to strengthen the facility, so it will remain operational after an 8.0-magnitude earthquake," he said.

Renovations will be completed in 11 phases. The first phase will convert the 4th floor from inpatient care rooms to administrative offices and is slated to be completed in the spring of 2012. The remaining phases will take place on the 1st floor and transform 20 medical service sections into a modern clinical care facility. All renovations are slated for completion by November 2014.

"The different phases have been designed to maintain uninterrupted services throughout the duration of the renovation," said Farmer. "Each first floor duty section will be moved into an alternate location to allow total access for a complete renovation of the space. Once the work is completed in each duty section, the section will be moved back into place and the next section will be moved out for the process to be completed in each phase."

To help patients navigate throughout the ordeal, maps and signs will be posted around the hospital. As the renovation progresses, updates will be sent out to the base community.

"Once the renovations are complete, the hospital will provide a state of the art environment for the delivery of healthcare to our customers," Farmer said. "The new lighting fixtures and heating system will also help us to reduce our energy consumption."

For more information about the project, contact the facilities management office at 225-8450.