A plan to expand access to primary care services in Franklin County has taken a major step forward, with two buildings on the campus of University of Vermont Health Network – Alice Hyde Medical Center being demolished to make way for a new primary care facility that will be built and operated by Hudson Headwaters Health Network.

Demolition of the medical office buildings at 183 Park Street and 24 Fourth Street on Alice Hyde’s campus began earlier this month and is expected to wrap up by the end of next week, said Kristin Ellis-Wood, Associate Vice President of Professional and Support Services at Alice Hyde. Once the buildings are fully demolished, Hudson Headwaters plans to purchase the empty, 2.4-acre parcel, with construction expected to begin later this year. In December 2023, Hudson Headwaters opened a small, temporary facility on Alice Hyde’s campus and has since enrolled hundreds of new patients from Malone and the surrounding communities.

The office buildings being demolished had housed some physicians and providers from Alice Hyde’s primary care team, as well as specialty offices including Pediatrics, Urology, Gastroenterology and General Surgery. These care teams have moved to the following locations:

• Members of the Primary Care team previously located at 183 Park Street have moved to 15 Fourth Street on the hospital’s campus.
• Pediatrics has moved to 20 Fourth Street on the hospital’s campus.
• Gastroenterology, General Surgery and Urology offices have moved to the hospital’s second floor.

The primary care team moved into newly renovated space which had been vacant following the relocation of Citizen Advocates’ Crisis Center last year. The specialty care teams moved into newly renovated space on Alice Hyde’s Second Floor, where a long-vacant inpatient care wing was turned into clinical offices for specialty outpatient care.

Hospitals leaders said demolition of the buildings is a major step forward as Alice Hyde and Hudson Headwaters work to expand access to primary care in Franklin County, where surveys have shown thousands of residents do not have an established primary care provider.

“Access to primary care is the foundation of healthy communities and is at the heart of Alice Hyde’s mission of caring for people across our region and promoting health, wellness and wellbeing,” said Ellis-Wood. “We are excited for what the future holds and continue to work closely with Hudson Headwaters on this impactful project to expand access to primary care for residents of Franklin County.”

She added that bringing both the primary and specialty care practices into the hospital will create better experiences for patients and ensure the care teams have access to additional space and leading-edge clinical facilities and support services.

“Updating our facilities ensures our providers and care teams have the tools and space they need to meet the growing and changing needs of our patients,” said Ellis-Wood. “Beathing new life into these areas of our hospital supports our people and ensures our patients have ready access to the care they need while at Alice Hyde.”