CULLMAN, Ala. – Cullman Regional is now a 175-bed hospital with the recent completion of a four- story, 30-bed tower expansion. The project added 13 new critical care beds, 12 new medical/surgical beds and five beds created by renovating existing space in the hospital. Current patients will be moved to the new patient rooms and crews will begin renovating the old patient rooms in the critical care and medical/surgical units. After final approval of the renovated beds by the Alabama Department of Public Health, both units will fully open this fall.
“North Alabama’s population growth is a significant driver for projects like this, and the pandemic also has hospitals evaluating their ability to care for patients when volumes are high,” said CEO James Clements. “We won’t be able to take care of our community in the future if we aren’t proactive today.”
The tower expansion, part of a $30 million overall expansion project that also included renovating and enlarging the hospital’s ER in 2022, was supported by Congressman Robert Aderholt, R-Alabama, with $1.5 million in appropriated funds.
The tower expansion is the third in a series of four major expansion projects the hospital expects to complete within three years. Prior to the ER and tower expansions, Cullman Regional’s Hartselle Health Park opened in 2021 bringing needed outpatient services to south Morgan County residents. After recently receiving state approval, the hospital will begin construction on a fourth project – a freestanding emergency department in Hartselle set to open in 2024.
According to the hospital, Cullman Regional’s ability to sustain its growth initiatives contrasts with how many other hospitals in Alabama are performing. According to a February report commissioned by the Alabama Hospital Association, half of the state’s hospitals operated at a loss in 2022.
