LAPLACE — Groundwork has been active in recent weeks as crew members prepare what will be the relocated site of Ochsner Medical Complex – River Parishes.

The hospital is moving its campus location from Rue de Santé to a new freestanding facility at the corner of Tiffany Drive and Airline Highway in LaPlace next to Winn-Dixie.

The new $12 million medical facility was announced in June, part of a larger development that calls for the renovation of the current Rue de Santé location into a 82-bed behavioral health facility.

The first part of the medical maneuvers calls the new Ochsner Medical Complex – River Parishes opening by the summer of 2017.

Ochsner officials said the planned 20,000 square foot medical complex will house a 24-hour, 7-day-a-week freestanding emergency department accommodating 13 beds, onsite laboratory and radiology services using advanced technologies.

Ochsner employs approximately 90 staff members on Rue de Santé and will continue to do so at the new location.

Ochsner officials said their TeleStroke program would be available at the new location to provide lifesaving interventions for patients experiencing a stroke.

On the emergency services side, the new locations expands from nine to 13 emergency room bays. On the diagnostic side, the location offers everything from X-ray to MRI, mammography, stress test and CT. A laboratory will be available there, too, to process blood work.”