Construction to begin on radiation oncology facility at medical center

The participants at a Nov. 10 groundbreaking for Jefferson Regional Medical Center’s new radiation oncology facility were Garland Strickland (from left), construction manager, CDI Contractors; Jeff Ferris, director of campus development, JRMC; Brian Thomas, president and chief executive officer, JRMC; radiation oncologist Shahid Hameed, M.D.; Kathy Ross, director, oncology services, Jones- Dunklin Cancer Center; Peter Austin, vice president and chief operating officer, JRMC; Dave Sadler and Richard Taylor, both of Nelson Architectural Group. 
(Special to The Commercial)
The participants at a Nov. 10 groundbreaking for Jefferson Regional Medical Center’s new radiation oncology facility were Garland Strickland (from left), construction manager, CDI Contractors; Jeff Ferris, director of campus development, JRMC; Brian Thomas, president and chief executive officer, JRMC; radiation oncologist Shahid Hameed, M.D.; Kathy Ross, director, oncology services, Jones- Dunklin Cancer Center; Peter Austin, vice president and chief operating officer, JRMC; Dave Sadler and Richard Taylor, both of Nelson Architectural Group. (Special to The Commercial)

Jefferson Regional Medical Center's latest expansion project, a radiation oncology facility, will be an addition to the Jones-Dunklin Cancer Center.

Ground was broken Nov. 10 for the radiation oncology facility, according to a news release.

The new building will be attached to the north side of the Jefferson Professional Center 1. It will be approximately 8,800 square feet and will serve as the radiation center for the Jones-Dunklin Cancer Center.

Among the technologically advanced equipment that will be featured are:

• 128-slice Siemens SOMATOM go.Open Pro CT Simulator -- Up to 75% of respiratory patients breathe irregularly, often creating variations in imaging. This Direct Intelligent 4D technology adapts image acquisition to patient breathing in real time to reduce those variations. The unit also has scan times that are twice as fast as conventional CT simulators, according to the release.

• Varian True Beam Linear Accelerator -- At the heart of this high-precision radiotherapy system is groundbreaking beam generation technology. It's fast and delivers precise doses with more energies. It gives radiation oncologists the tools and flexibility to design new treatment options that can make all the difference in radiation therapy, according to the release.

• State-of-the-art radiation therapy vault -- The hospital has partnered with Veritas Medical Solutions, the vault construction choice for leading cancer facilities such as MD Anderson, Johns Hopkins, Penn State Health, Moffitt Cancer Center and Thomas Jefferson Health System, according to the release.

Also included will be two exam rooms, a consult room, a physician office, holding areas, dressing rooms and a waiting room.

Seeing patients at the radiation oncology center will be radiation oncologist Dr. Shahid Hameed. Hameed is a long-time member of the Jefferson Regional medical staff who has many years of experience treating cancer patients in South Arkansas.

Construction on the new facility is expected to be complete by early March 2022.

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