South Reno will have a new full-service emergency room ready for patients by early 2024.

Northern Nevada Sierra Medical Center hosted a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday to announce its third Freestanding Emergency Department.

CEO Alan Olive called it an investment in the community, and said it will fill geographical gaps in healthcare that he and his family have experienced.

“I raise my family here in South Reno, and obviously we’ve had to go to the emergency room quite a few times" he said. "So it would have been great if this was here when our kids were growing up.”

The groundbreaking comes one month before the medical center plans to cut the ribbon on its new Spanish Springs emergency room.

Olive and Dr. Travis Anderson, an ER physician with the center, both said that the expansions will support community growth across Reno.

“Fortunately with these emergency departments, by offloading the volume at other emergency departments, we are able to take the time to really care for the patient as a whole human being," Anderson said.

The new location, ER at Damonte Ranch on Steamboat Parkway, is intended to open one year after construction begins and will offer 24/7 emergency care services, diagnostic imaging and lab to South Reno residents.

When completed, the FED will treat medical needs including chest pain, broken bones, minor cuts, asthma, allergic reactions, flu and other ailments.

It also feature nine rooms for patients. 

"That's what's hard about the emergency department, is, anyone that comes in, it's probably their worst day ever. And it is their emergency, so we are treating people that are sick and ill and in pain, and are generally not happy. So what we try to do is meet all of their needs and concerns and not just their medical complaints," says Dr. Anderson.

The new facility will be staffed by board-certified physicians and ER-trained nurses. The facility will also have onsite lab 24/7 and diagnostic imaging including X-ray, CT and ultrasound.

(Northern Nevada Sierra Medical Center contributed to this report.)