With new facilities to improve access to healthcare underway in many areas of Loudoun County and more on the way, CEO Randall (Randy) L. Kelley is very gracious when he says he takes no credit for the many additions and improvements.

"This plan was put in place by my predecessors," he says, "but in the short time I've been here, I understand and completely support Inova's commitment to expand and enhance our services in Loudoun county."

Inova Loudoun's new Purcellsville medical center on Hatcher Avenue is in the pre-leasing phase now, and Inova has signed a letter of intent for a Lovettsville medical center that is scheduled to open once the new town center is complete.

Greatly expanded services at Inova's Cromwell Hospital in Leesburg now include emergency, radiology, acute rehabilitation, physical therapy, a 22-bed psychiatric unit, women's, infant's and children's care and a free clinic. A community health center established as a separate 501C3 will operate as a partnership with the Chamber of Commerce to provide another important healthcare access asset.

The Middleburg medical center will be underway as soon as a suitable location is found, and an Avonlea center is now in the planning stages.

In addition, Inova plans a Dulles South Medical Center on Route 50 that will offer all services when Phase I opens. When Phase II of the Dulles South facility opens it will include an academic and research campus.

Although Kelley has only been at Inova Loudoun Hospital since August of last year, he is already well aware of the challenges that face the county.

"We measure outpatient and emergency care in minutes, not miles," Kelley said. "Traffic is a really significant challenge here for ambulances and for our patients."

Kelley brings more than twenty years of healthcare experience to his new position, most recently serving as President and CEO of the 206-bed Gateway Health System in Clarksville, Tennessee.

Master Gardener

Although he finds navigating the recent fields of ice a radical change from Clarksville weather, Kelley's upbringing in Michigan "prepared him for the worst" in Northern Virginia. As a Master Gardener, he is delighted to be in a zone as diverse and encouraging as he expects to enjoy in Loudoun.

"I hated to leave my roses and my garden in Tennessee," Kelley explained. "But I really look forward to starting again here as soon as the ice permits."

It's easy to understand why Loudoun's Inova Hospital was attractive to Kelley after 20 years in the healthcare industry, and it's just as easy to see how concerned he is about traffic congestion and housing prices that are so high that 40% of his employees cannot afford to live in the county.

"We have a fantastic staff," he said, "our clinical quality is tremendous, our service is high quality and patient friendly, and all measurements confirm that. We need to continue to grow to meet the community's needs, but we must ensure that our plans for growth closely parallel the needs of the community."

Award Winning Services

Today, the rapidly expanding Inova healthcare campus in Lansdowne is very much in tune with the growing community it serves. Centered around an attractive, modern, bright and welcoming 155-bed facility, the award-winning services include a brand new pediatric care and emergency center that is already serving 32 children a day.

Inova's ambulatory care is thriving and the hospital offers surgeons six operating rooms and a cancer center where prosthetic seeding procedures will begin this spring.

"We will open 28 more in-patient beds and 12 intensive care beds by the end of the year," said Vice President of Communications and Development David Goldberg.

"The truly comprehensive services we offer are simply a reflection of our commitment to the Loudoun community," Goldberg added.

Kelley is particularly proud of the collegiality between his medical and nursing staffs.

"Our physicians are truly outstanding and the receipt of the Magnet Award for Nursing is a wonderful validation of the quality of our staff."

Recently, Kelley promoted Dr. Greg Bentz to chief medical officer to lead the hospital's case management program.

"Greg has been a member of the staff for 16 years and is highly respected by everyone. He will be a tremendous asset as we continue to grow and expand." Kelley said.

Competition

Because Kelley has worked in Tennessee, he is very familiar with Healthcare Corporation of America, the national organization that intends to build another hospital in Loudoun and recently announced plans to develop a new medical campus on Route 50.

Kelley draws a clear distinction between Inova Loudoun being a not-for-profit organization and HCA's for-profit status, indicating clearly that if HCA builds four-and-a-half miles from Inova Loudoun in Broadlands, both hospitals will suffer.

"There are 528 square miles in Loudoun County, why build another hospital four-and-a-half miles from our Lansdowne campus?"

Before Inova purchased Loudoun Hospital, there were complaints about the length of waiting time at the facility and about the re-routing of patients to other hospitals.

According to Goldberg there have been no re-routed patients in five years, and the longest wait has been less than 3 hours for the 54,000 patients Inova Loudoun sees each year.

"This is a highly competitive market," Kelley concluded. "HCA wants people to believe we have a monopoly but I assure you, more is not always better in healthcare. We are providing expert, affordable, quality services as we expand to meet our community's needs, and we are committed to continue to do precisely that as a partner and as a healthcare provider."