Phil Castle, The Business Times

What began as a conversation in his basement a decade ago has culminated in what Chris Thomas believes will become one of the best cancer treatment facilities in the country.

Grand Valley Oncology will soon relocate into the James Pulsipher Regional Cancer Center, a four-story, 130,000-square-foot addition to the Community Hospital campus on G Road in Grand Junction.

Thomas, president and chief executive officer of the hospital, expects a moving experience in every sense of the term. “I’m going to be so excited to turn those keys over to them.”

The new center and medical plaza also will house cardiology, pulmonary and women’s health services — not to mention accommodate additional growth.
The fourth floor remains vacant for now, Thomas says. “We have options.”

In relocating Grand Valley Oncology and other clinics into the new building, more space will become available in the hospital and its other facilities, Thomas says. The building on First Street and Patterson Road in Grand Junction that now houses Grand Valley Oncology will be remodeled to serve as a home for occupational therapy services.

It’s all part of what Thomas sees as the overall mission for the hospital to meet the health care needs of the region and provide choices that improve care and lower costs.

What the new center won’t do, he says, is result in higher prices fixed by the government and contracts.

Construction of the James Pulsipher Regional Cancer Center and Monument View Medical Plaza was completed in December following more than two years of work. Construction cost about $60 million, and 97 percent of that went to local contractors and vendors, Thomas says.

The total cost of the project topped $82 million.

James Pulsipher donated $1 million for the project, one of the largest single contributions in the history of the Community Hospital Foundation. A total of more than $2.5 million in additional donations also went to the project.

A third of the cancer center and medical plaza will be used to house Grand Valley Oncology, Thomas says. Operated by Community Hospital, Grand Valley Oncology offers a range of cancer treatment options, including medical and radiation oncology, gynecological oncology, genetic counseling, social services, clinical trials and a survivorship program.

Another third of the building will house other clinics, including cardiology, pulmonology and women’s health services.

The second floor includes an infusion center offering expansive views of the Colorado National Monument. “I think it’s just going to be a more healing environment,” Thomas says.

The third floor will house women’s health services and will be located just steps away from the birthing center at the hospital, he says.

The remaining third of the building will accommodate additional growth, Thomas says. The center and plaza was constructed to meet hospital building codes. So a portion could be used for in-patient care, he says.

The cancer center fulfills a commitment to the  physicians who in 2014 joined with Community Hospital to start Grand Valley Oncology, he says.

Thomas still remembers a meeting in the basement of his home to discuss launching the practice.

Grand Valley Oncology subsequently was designated an accredited cancer center and then received the highest level of accreditation through a national quality assurance program. The National Committee for Quality Assurance awarded the Patient Centered Specialty Practice accreditation.

In addition, Grand Valley Oncology collaborates with the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah.

Thomas says the combination of local physicians and facilities with the availability of additional expertise offers care closer to home to residents of Western Colorado and Eastern Utah in what he says will be one of the best cancer treatment centers in the country. “This is top of the line.”

Moreover, the cancer center and medical plaza reflects a growing operation at Community Hospital and an ongoing mission to provide health care choices, Thomas says.

With 16 years as president and CEO, Thomas is one of the longest-tenured hospital executives in Colorado.

During that span, the staff at the hospital has grown from 386 to 1,400 and the annual payroll from $20 million to $106 million, he says.

In 2016, Community Hospital moved to a new campus on G Road and into a four-story building with a total of nearly 140,000 square foot. The new building replaced what was a 50-year-old hospital on 12th Street.

Thomas foresees additional growth for the operation with more physicians and practices.

He credits growth to creative approaches and collaborations — like the effort with the Town of Palisade to open a health care clinic as well as another effort supported by federal and state funding to open a center on the hospital campus in Grand Junction to offer child care services primarily to hospital employees.

Thomas also credits a hospital board willing to take on new projects and initiatives. “We try to never say no.”