Giving Thanks for Community Builders: Total Health Care

Building a new healthcare facility takes lots of planning. When that facility is designed to be a community hub, the planning takes even more significance. HBW Construction was involved with Total Health Care’s seventh location for nearly a year before any construction was started. The nonprofit’s newest location on Blue Water Boulevard in Odenton, MD, is dedicated to caring for patients most in need, many at or below the 200% poverty line. The facilities include a health care center offering family practice, pediatrics, mental health services, and a separate pharmacy.

HBW specializes in many types of commercial construction for clients across the Washington D.C. region and our services help clients fulfill their vision month after month. The work is always important, and the client relationships meaningful, yet there’s something extra special when we leverage our niche healthcare construction experience to enhance an established community like Odenten. In this season of thankfulness, the Total Health Care mission reminds us that construction can help change lives.

Total Health Care, Caring for the Community 

The Total Health Care center in Odenton was carefully conceived to meet the specific needs of its community. The facility features many exam rooms, and though that required specific mechanical, plumbing, and gas piping services, it was a straightforward and efficient build.

The client has been working to improve the health and quality of life in the communities they serve since 1968. Their locations across Maryland offer medical, dental, emotional, and specialty healthcare services to nine of Greater Baltimore’s most underserved neighborhoods. Of note, Total Health Care provides treatment to all who seek treatment regardless of their ability to pay. The organization is supported by volunteers, donations, and funding from local, state, and federal government agencies.

Bringing Healthcare Home

The Total Health Care build reflects a trend that HBW is seeing across our area, where facilities are being built closer to places where patients live. We’re seeing a greater focus on satellite locations that share the support and resources of larger organizations, including hospitals and top providers. This trend has included urgent care centers, outpatient surgery centers, and offices offering routine and specialty care. 

As of last year, at least 300 urgent care facilities were added in the United States, bringing the number of standalone locations to well over 6,000 total. Thousands of freestanding and lessee clinics were added nationally, too, with many following a construction template similar to retail franchises. With construction interest rates still high, smaller facilities meet patient needs for quality care and convenience and do so more affordably. 

Healthcare Market Leader

For clients like Total Health Care, who have more healthcare expertise than construction experience, HBW is an ideal partner. During the planning and building process, HBW acts as a guide and a liaison with stakeholders, the architect, and specialty trades. Our team includes members with decades of healthcare construction experience, including my 30-year career.

With so much on-the-job experience, our team has seen it all, and worked with the top names in healthcare. Aspects unique to medical construction have become routine for HBW, from infectious control requirements to building in areas occupied by patients and caregivers. That level of experience allows us to advise clients, helping them set realistic and achievable schedules while avoiding costly missteps.

Since 2019, HBW Construction has been awarded more than $61 million in healthcare projects and has completed over 100 purpose-built facilities for medical, dental, surgical, veterinary, and other healthcare services. 

As we reflect on all we are thankful for this year, we include clients who share our passion for our local communities, including Total Health Care.