Franciscan Health officially celebrated the opening of its new offices in Cherry Creek Plaza with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday, March 19.
The grand opening event featured interactive tours of the new adult and pediatric rehabilitation spaces and the new primary care space of Specialty Physicians of Illinois LLC. Attendees had the opportunity to meet with healthcare providers and ask questions. The event also included refreshments, games and activities, health screenings and door prizes.
Raymond Grady, president and CEO of Franciscan Health Olympia Fields, thanked everyone involved in the facility planning, construction and finishing touches, along with the staff and other instrumental collaborators.
Franciscan’s pediatric therapy
facility in Homewood. (Chris
Weber/H-F Chronicle)
“Together, we are all working to advance healthcare in this community,” Grady said. “I want you to know that we care, and we’ll be here for you 24 hours a day, dedicated to making you the best that you can be.”
Providers have already started seeing patients at these offices that now are fully open and welcoming more. Franciscan Health has also been remodeling its existing outpatient therapy services location within Cherry Creek Plaza, with plans to increase staff in the coming months. Fransiscan’s total occupied space in the shopping center has grown to approximately 20,000 square feet.
Director of Rehabilitation Services at Franciscan Health, Laurie Shellito, explained that pediatric therapy is in high demand, and parents often have to wait up to a year to get an appointment.
“Being here in the community and ensuring we provide access to our programs is key,” Shellito said. “The younger the patients are, the sooner we can get started on the intervention, the better the results are going to be.”
The new pediatric rehabilitation space will treat everything from orthopedic conditions to developmental delays in young patients. The expanding outpatient therapy offices will handle the needs of patients ranging from athletic injuries to geriatric care. Patients receiving rehabilitation services at Franciscan’s Olympia Fields campus will now be treated in Homewood.
The primary care center staff said their office will bring services closer to home for many patients. The facility has already hired a physician and a nurse practitioner and plans to add more providers this year. They are taking appointments until 7 p.m. on some nights, and the plan is to expand these convenient hours as more staff come on board. To make an appointment, call 708-647-0571.