Certificate of Need application met with unanimous support
(CARBONDALE, IL) Southern Illinois Healthcare today received unanimous approval from the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board in Chicago to build the region’s first freestanding cancer center.
The approval came on the heels of overwhelming regional support for the 42,000 square foot facility to be located on Route 13 in Carterville on 15 acres of wooded property just west of John A. Logan College.
“We are excited to move forward. From the beginning, this project has received substantial community support by way of the many letters sent to the Review Board on our behalf and fundraising support through our SIH Hope is Home campaign. We look forward to building the region’s first comprehensive, state-of-the-art cancer center,” said SIH President and CEO Rex Budde.
The new center will bring all of SIH’s cancer care services—radiation, medical and surgical oncology, infusion therapy, cancer rehabilitation, clinical trials, specialty clinics and support groups—under one roof.
“This will improve quality and coordination of care, not to mention convenience for patients in the region who are at risk for or are fighting cancer,” said SIH Cancer Institute Administrative Director Jennifer Badiu.
The park-like setting along Route 13 provided the ideal location SIH was looking for in terms of its central location. The site selection was critical in terms of accessibility, as many southern counties are among those with the highest cancer incident rates in Illinois.
“Of the 16 counties in our primary and secondary service areas, Franklin, Johnson and Alexander fall in the top 10 for cancer incidence rates in the state. With the exception of Jackson County, the majority of counties in deep southern Illinois have cancer rates that are higher than the state average,” Badiu said.
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