Fiscal Year 2023 Capital Assistance for Hurricane Response and Recovery Efforts (CARE) - The proposed MCHC Waiting Room for Clinical Laboratory and Vaccination Areas under the HRSA CARE funding opportunity consists of the expansion of the existing Morovis main health center of this FQHC in Morovis, Puerto Rico (PR) to establish a new waiting room for patients who access the clinical laboratory, radiology center and vaccination area. A covered and roofed cement porch area of 563 square feet (27.6 feet long, 19.6 feet wide, and 11 feet high) at the center’s entrance will be expanded and enclosed with cement block walls to convert the area into the proposed waiting area for patients. This will separate the patients going to the clinical lab for tests or to the vaccination area for immunization services and radiology and sonogram services from the current waiting area inside of the main building for outpatient (OPD) clinics, reducing waiting time for both groups of patients for greater efficiency in the provision of orientation and education of patients and registration procedures. The additional dimensions will be 19 ft. 6 inches wide X 21 ft. long and 15 ft. high, or 410 square feet, to be added to the building’s existing square footage for a total area of 946 sq. ft. for the new waiting room. The work to be carried out consists of demolishing a 3 feet wide stairway and a handicap ramp that does not comply with ADA standards and cannot be maintained. There will be a new 6 feet wide stairway and a 42-inch-wide X 32 ft. long ramp, which will be ADA compliant for handicapped patients at the entranceway of the waiting room and registration area. This expansion requires the demolition of a 6 ft X 19 ft strip of the existing floor and a 4 ft. by 19 ft. strip of the concrete slab of the roof. This leads to the construction of a 4 ft. 5-inch thick slab of 295 sq. ft. area and a roof slab of 720 sq. ft. at a height of 15 ft. with a thickness of 8 inches. This makes the entrance to the waiting room the primary entrance to the healthcare facility. The four-wall enclosure of the open area will create a comfortable waiting room. The existing roof is 11 feet tall, and the new roof will be 15 feet tall, permitting windows to be installed between the existing roof and the new slab around the expanded structure to allow natural light to enter the waiting room. These windows will be green and resistant to hurricane-force winds. There will be a total of 168 sq. ft. of windows. These windows will improve the quality of the environment for patients in the waiting area. This waiting room will accommodate 55 fixed chairs, 5 of which will be handicapped designated. A 5 ft. high retaining wall needs to be constructed 28 ft. in length that separates the waiting room floor from the new ramp and stairway. In the design phase, a 2-ton energy-saving air conditioner will be purchased with grant funds and installed. Air conditioning is essential in the tropical climate of Puerto Rico. A two-stall bathroom within the waiting room for patients, one of which will be ADA-compliant for handicapped patients, including installation of utilities, and all plumbing for the toilets and wash basin will be constructed. All electrical work within the waiting room, including recessed light sockets in the roof and electrical outlets at the reception and registration desks for computers of the corresponding staff, and the installation of a small (4 ft. X 3 ft.) fixed reception desk with plexiglass enclosure on top for the reception and orientation of patients entering the waiting room is part of the design. In addition, a 10 ft. X 3 ft. fixed registration desk will be installed at the other end of the waiting room for two registration staff to collect patient data and provide orientation. This project will expand access to all patients to the services of the main center, maximizing the current waiting area within the building, which has become too small. The new waiting room is particularly needed in emergencies such as COVID-19 pandemic.
