(LISTEN): MU executive pleased with CRMC integration; new Children’s Hospital to open in June

The University of Missouri’s vice chancellor for health affairs is praising the integration of Columbia-based MU Health Care and Jefferson City’s Capital Region Medical Center (CRMC). The integration was completed earlier this year. MU’s Nim Chinniah says it’s brought stability as well.

“You will now have a stable, vibrant community hospital not just today and not just tomorrow but for generations to come. And what’s what everybody wants,” Chinniah says.

The 100-bed hospital is still called Capital Region Medical Center. Mr. Chinniah and other MU Health Care executives say integration has strengthened both systems, offering a path forward for growth and the expansion of services.

Mr. Chinniah will join host Fred Parry in-studio for the hour Saturday morning at 7 on 939 the Eagle’s “CEO Roundtable.” Another topic they’ll discuss will be MU Health Care’s new $232-million Children’s Hospital in Columbia to be fully operational in June. It will be opening in phases, and Chinniah describes it as a great facility:

“I think any community that’s making investment in kids and the future, that’s the kind of community you want to be in. Because that’s the community that has a lot of hope and confidence for the future. So this is a great facility,” says Chinniah.

The new Children’s Hospital is being built near Hitt and Lake streets, near MU Health Care’s main hospital campus. The facility’s aim is to help the system create one convenient and centralized location for all hospital services.