Mercy Medical expanding emergency services to Marion

Cedar Rapids — Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids will open a new emergency services center in Marion, next to the MercyCare Marion clinic there.

The new site will be at 3701 Katz Dr., off of 10th Ave., and is expected to open in 2024.

In 2020, the hospital opened an emergency location in Hiawatha, which was the first emergency department in Iowa available outside of a hospital setting, according to a news release from the hospital. In 2022, Genesis Hospitals opened a free-standing emergency department in Bettendorf, making the new Marion location announced this week the third of its kind in Iowa, according to Mark Wehr, director of marketing and communications for Mercy Medical.

The off-site emergency department has proved successful in Hiawatha. It saw more than 15,000 visits in 2022, a 52 percent increase from 2021, according to Wehr. Hospital leadership expects the Marion location to perform similarly.

The hospital has conducted extensive research and spent years planning for this new addition. The hospital’s main emergency department has seen a need for greater capacity, especially during this last flu season, according to the hospital.

“Health care is challenging us to continue to think differently about how and where patients want to receive care,” Dr. Timothy Quinn, Mercy’s president and chief executive officer said in a statement. “This new (emergency department) location reflects our commitment to adjusting how we provide care based on what is best for the community. We’re being responsive to what patients are telling us they want for health care services.”

The new location will be open 24/7 and offer on-site radiology and lab services. It will be staffed with existing employees and new hires.

Patients who come to the Hiawatha emergency department who need additional hospital care are transferred to Mercy’s downtown location for free, in partnership with ambulance services. The same process will be followed at the new Marion location.

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