A new facility is being built to help area veterans with their healthcare needs. The Erie Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center is in the process of constructing a brand new outpatient facility on Route 322 in Cranberry in front of the Home Depot.
“This will expand and modernize what we have in Venango County,” John A. Gennaro, the medical center director, said to a small group of veterans and government officials gathered Wednesday morning for a ceremonial groundbreaking. As he spoke, a crew from the Cleveland-based Downing Construction was busy working on the concrete flooring for the building, which is expected to be completed in the spring 2022.
“This will expand and modernize what we have in Venango County,” John A. Gennaro, the medical center director, said to a small group of veterans and government officials gathered Wednesday morning for a ceremonial groundbreaking. As he spoke, a crew from the Cleveland-based Downing Construction was busy working on the concrete flooring for the building, which is expected to be completed in the spring 2022.
“This is real important,” said Tony Digiacomo, director of Crawford County’s Veteran Services, noting the regional reach of the facility. “We have a lot of Titusville veterans who go to Venango."
The current clinic in located in the Pennwood Center on Route 8 in Sugarcreek. It serves about 2,000 veterans and has a staff of 15 VA employees. In 2021, the clinic handled more than 9,000 outpatient visits.
The Route 8 facility is a roughly 6,000 square foot space, according to Chanel Cook a spokesperson for the VA. The new facility will be roughly double that size.
Along with being larger, the new facility will feature the Patient Aligned Care Team model, which paitent rooms to provide whole-person care and life-long health and wellness. The center with also have multipurpose rooms to accomodate telehealth, exams and consultation.
The current clinic in located in the Pennwood Center on Route 8 in Sugarcreek. It serves about 2,000 veterans and has a staff of 15 VA employees. In 2021, the clinic handled more than 9,000 outpatient visits.
The Route 8 facility is a roughly 6,000 square foot space, according to Chanel Cook a spokesperson for the VA. The new facility will be roughly double that size.
Along with being larger, the new facility will feature the Patient Aligned Care Team model, which paitent rooms to provide whole-person care and life-long health and wellness. The center with also have multipurpose rooms to accomodate telehealth, exams and consultation.
Titusville’s longtime veterans advocate Charles Castelluccio asked to address the crowd after the ceremonial gold shovel turning of the dirt. Chaplain for the northwest Pennsylvania 28th District of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Castelluccio walked to the podium to praise Gennaro and the new facility. “No one mentioned the traveling,” he said. “We can get here in 10 to 15 minutes. Can you imagine waking up on January 5 with a few inches of snow on the ground and needing to get to the clinic in Erie which has 24 inches? Would you want to go to Erie?”
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