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ALTON - Bishop Thomas John Paprocki of the Springfield Catholic Diocese blessed the new $14 million, 15,500 square-feet OSF Healthcare Moeller Cancer Center and others participated in a well-attended ribbon cutting on Tuesday afternoon.
Mike and Amy Moeller were key donors in the new center’s construction and is named for them. Mike is a financial planner whose father died of cancer.
The free-standing cancer center has a walkway connecting to the main OSF hospital.
Sister M. Anselma, the COO, provided words about the importance of the new facility for the caregivers and patients.
“Six exam rooms are connected and there are private consultation and exam rooms,” OSF Healthcare said in a release. “Local and regional artists provided artwork throughout the new center. There were 1,200 submissions and a selection committee narrowed it down to 30 and some spaces will be reserved for additional submissions.”
One of the key fixtures in the facility is the 19’ x 10’ length of the wall that will bear the large “Footprints in the Sand” landscape, the single largest submission by artists Tracy Sayers Trombetta of Brighton.
“There are 16 treatment spaces for patients who need infusions,” OSF said. “Patients have choices… open bays, flexible lighting, view of a healing garden, or an ability to receive treatment in the healing garden if clinically appropriate. There are high ceilings with large windows to maximize the feeling of openness and maximize natural light throughout the structure.
“The new OSF Healthcare Moeller Cancer Center includes a new computerized tomographic (CT) scanner is connected to new linear accelerated for precision treatment aimed at preserving healthy tissue.
“A chapel off the lobby that has been designed with wheelchair access, so all patients can have an opportunity to pray there. There is a new Patient Education Room to provide space for support group meetings, educational programs, plus art and music therapy.”
A fun fact OSF provided was 30 trucks of concrete to hold the vault to hold a new linear accelerator for precision radiation.”Dan Brannan also contributed to this story.
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