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or the third consecutive year, the WVU Health System Board of Directors has approved a plan to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into the healthcare infrastructure of West Virginia and the surrounding region.  

The projects, which are subject to regulatory approval, are planned at nine WVU Health System facilities, including locally at Thomas Hospitals. Other facilities are in Fairmont, Keyser, Morgantown, Parkersburg, Princeton, and Weirton in West Virginia; Oakland, Maryland; and St. Clairsville, Ohio.

Collectively, they include more than $350 million in investments, bringing WVU Medicine’s three-year total of capital improvement projects to more than $1.2 billion.  

“This continues our momentum of expanding access across the region to improve the health trajectory of the communities we serve, while also giving local economies a needed boost, as these projects will create new jobs and economic opportunities for thousands,” said WVU Health System President and CEO Albert L. Wright, Jr.

“Our growth and expansion are always mission-based and intentional and always intended to provide better service and access to those we serve.”  

Local projects

The two planned projects in the Kanawha Valley include the relocation of Thomas Hospital's Nuclear Medicine service and renovations for a Surgical Intensive Care Unit.

A $4 million investment will fund the move of the Nuclear Medicine service to a new location at WVU Heart and Vascular Institute in South Charleston. Funding includes the replacement of two cameras used for diagnosis and treatment.  

The Nuclear Medicine project is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2027.

An additional $8.7 million investment will fund the renovation of a 14-bed unit previously leased to hospice. This will allow the hospital to consolidate highly complex surgical cases with heart and vascular surgery patients in one intensive care unit, officials said.  

Like the Nuclear Medicine project, renovations for the Surgical Intensive Care Unit are expected to be completed by early 2027.

Other projects

WVU Medicine's largest capital investment is planned for Camden Clark Medical Center in Parkersburg. On April 15, members approved an estimated $135 million for a new patient tower at the Parkersburg facility, which is expected to be completed by the summer of 2029.

Other capital investments approved by the board include:

• $68.1 million to fund the demolition of 80-plus-year-old structures located on the Fairmont Medical Center campus, along with the construction of a new three-story building;
• $15 million for a three-story, 21,000 square foot addition to the Garrett Regional Medical Center in Oakland, Maryland, which will include a new radiation oncology center; and
• $56 million for the construction of a  two-story, 55,000 square foot community hospital in St. Clairsville, Ohio, among other projects.

A full list of approved investments is available on the WVU Medicine website.