Brigham and Women's plans big expansion of its ER

This from the New England Council:

 "Brigham and Women’s Hospital is planning a $73.2 emergency room expansion.

"The prestigious Boston hospital’s emergency room has not been updated for almost two decades and their nearly 2 percent annual growth in recent years makes the renovations even more necessary.  The hospital will be buying new equipment, expanding and reorganizing its emergency room, and allocating more resources to emergency radiology capacity, behavioral health, and oncology.  The hospital filed paperwork with state for the expansion in early November.

“Brigham and Women’s currently operates at or above capacity nearly every day, so looking ahead, we anticipate the need for additional treatment spaces to meet the demand for emergency services,” the hospital said in a statement. “The BWH ED serves as the main access point for emergency care for Dana-Farber patients, and these patients have unique needs. The oncology pod will include staffing with specialists in oncologic emergencies, a separate waiting area, dedicated bathrooms and the ability to control negative vs positive pressure in the room.''