Expect an early 2023 opening for the Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Hospital. Construction for the 51-bed inpatient facility is underway on Covenant Health’s Fort Sanders West campus at the intersection of Kingston Pike and Pellissippi Parkway. It is a joint venture between Covenant Health and Encompass Health.
Jennifer Steely
Jennifer Steely has been named chief executive officer of the new facility and will remain CEO of the current Patricia Neal rehab center at Fort Sanders Regional. As part of the joint venture project, the downtown center is undergoing renovation to become a 22-bed hospital-in-hospital structure, including converting all semi-private rooms to private rooms. Upon completion, it will be renamed Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Hospital Fort Sanders.
Steely is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations at both hospitals, as well as patient care and quality. She obtained a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy from the Eastern Kentucky University and a master’s degree in healthcare administration from the University of St. Francis in Illinois.
Both locations will provide 24-hour nursing care along with physical, occupational and speech therapies to patients recovering from major illnesses and injuries, including stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, amputation and complex orthopedic conditions.
Artist’s rendering of the new Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Hospital.
“We thank Jennifer for her dedication, hard work and leadership at the Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Center for nearly three decades, and we’re excited to expand her leadership role to our new joint venture hospital with Encompass Health,” said Jim VanderSteeg, Covenant Health president and CEO.
Encompass Health is the largest owner and operator of rehabilitation hospitals in the United States.
“Over the past 42 years, Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Center has built an incredible reputation for providing life-changing rehabilitative services, and we are honored to help continue building that legacy through this joint venture,” said Ed Mowen, president of Encompass Health’s MidAtlantic region.
VanderSteeg said the upgrades at Patricia Neal Fort Sanders and the new hospital in West Knox County total in excess of $50 million and are in addition to more than $200 million that was invested recently in the expansion of Parkwest and Fort Sanders Regional. “Not only is this significant in terms of the economic well-being of Knoxville, but very importantly, in terms of increased access for patients and additional jobs in Knoxville.”
Information provided by Covenant Health
