Trinity reported 400 to 600 workers are on site daily, and as of February, they had committed about 1.1 million hours of labor. Construction should finish by the end of the year, when Trinity will begin the move-in process.

Trinity and JE Dunn Construction representatives conducted a tour Friday to give media a first-hand look at the status of the $500 million project.

JE Dunn is moving very, very fast with the project,” said Dave Kohlman, Trinity vice president of facilities. There are some areas that are near completion.

Randy Schwan, Trinity vice president of mission integration, said it’s overwhelming to see painted surfaces, cabinetry and other finished pieces that have been put in place since the project started in 2018.

Jill Schramm/MDN The gift shop in Trinity’s new hospital is nearing construction completion Friday. The gift shop will be near the hospital’s main entrance.

“We can actually look to opening day now and see the progress and know that we’re nearing the finish line,” he said. Landscaping will take place this summer.

“It will start looking like a really cool facility instead of a construction site,” Schwan said.

The project is being built from bottom to top.

Upon entering the medical building atrium, the public can check in at an appointment desk before moving on to their medical visits. The first floor will accommodate the kidney dialysis unit, which will have 14 dialysis chairs compared to 10 chairs currently. Patients will be able to get their laboratory work done, visit the pharmacy and obtain any needed durable equipment.

Coming into the hospital atrium, a visitor will encounter the chapel, gift shop, coffee shop and cafeteria. The hospital will have an escalator between the first floor and a second-floor reception area. The second floor also will house pre-op and post-op surgery, the emergency department and radiology. The emergency department will increase in size from 13 treatment bays to 24.

Jill Schramm/MDN A 600,000-square-foot hospital takes shape on Trinity property in southwest Minot.

The six-story hospital will have 148 inpatient and intensive care rooms, all of which are designed for one patient per room.

The hospital has areas accessible to the public and other areas that are secured to separate staff and patients receiving care from public traffic. Each side has its own elevators and access routes.

The hospital and medical office building also were designed to bring in outside light.

“The use of natural light was a design feature that was intended, to let as much daylight as possible into the care environment, making it a more comfortable and a more cheerful place to be,” Schwan said.

The new hospital will be roughly three times the size of the current downtown hospital.

“It’s a large space, and so part of our transition plan is wayfinding for the patients and the visitors,” Schwan said. “We’re still working through that. But there’s a big ‘wow’ factor. There’s a lot of space here. We’re taking that into account when we look at our labor positions that we might need – that we don’t have today. We know we’re going to need some new ones. And we just think it’s going to be a lot more comfortable setting for our patients.”

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Trinity phases out COVID unit

Trinity Health is transitioning toward closure of its COVID-19 unit as case numbers drop to single digits. There were six COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Trinity on Friday.

That compares to 30 patients about a month ago, said Randy Schwan, Trinity vice president of mission integration. He said it no longer is realistic to dedicate an entire floor to COVID-19 patients.

“We have unmet needs in other areas that we are trying to make room for,” Schwan said, noting that patient numbers overall aren’t dropping. “People put off treatment. We are seeing that pent-up demand. We need to let people come back to get the regular care that they have been putting off.”

COVID-19 patients hospitalized for treatment will remain isolated from other patients, and staff will utilize personal protective equipment.