Project Overview:
The Sealy and Smith Foundation has provided a generous gift of $10 million to UTMB Health to enhance the patient experience for visitors to the UTMB Emergency Department and adjacent clinics. The project includes improvements to access from Garage
2 to the Emergency Department and the UTMB Health Clinics (UHC) building, and improvements to patient waiting and drop-off areas. The project also features a substantial aesthetic renewal to the Level 2 Emergency Department, allowing for warm
and inviting waiting areas and a better, more efficient patient flow through the suite. The work begins in late December 2022 and is expected to take five months.
Impact to Patients and Staff:
- The current pedestrian routes on Level 1 leading to the Emergency Department and UHC will close beginning Dec. 23, 2022. Temporary detours will be well marked and are designed to keep pedestrians safe, as
vehicles will continue to enter and exit Garage 2 during the construction.
- The current drop-off area and walkways in Garage 2 will also see changes, and only one elevator will be in service in the garage during the renovation. Please pay attention to signs as we
work to ensure the safety of our patients, staff and visitors.
- A short detour on the walkway to the UHC building will reroute pedestrians. A new covered handicap ramp and covered sidewalk will connect to the existing path to the UHC.
- The renovation will require the temporary removal of the current waiting area by Garage 2. Patients and guests awaiting rides will be asked to stay in the level 1 lobby of the UHC. Two large monitors connected to cameras overlooking
the patient drop-off area will show waiting patients a view of arriving vehicles. Once patients see their ride has arrived on the monitor, UTMB Transportation will take them back through the short detour and out to the waiting vehicle.
Project Update 3/29/23: Level 2 Lobby Detour
Beginning Monday, April 3, the Galveston Emergency Department will have a ten-day detour while construction teams work on new terrazzo flooring for the Level 2 lobby.
One elevator will always be in operation from Level 1/Garage 5 for Emergency Department patients and guests. The elevator access to the hallway leading to UHC and TDCJ will be unavailable during this 10-day period.
During this phase of the renovation, the UHC entrance from Garage 2 will be open beginning at 5:30 a.m. (instead of 6:30 a.m.), to allow staff and patients to access UHC and TDCJ without going through the Emergency Department lobby.
Signage guiding pedestrians around the work will be in place on Friday, March 31; the work is scheduled to be completed by Thursday, April 13. Thank you for your patience as we upgrade this important area.