February 1, 2011
Impressive, beautiful, inspiring – just a few of the words local dignitaries used while touring the new Rush University Cancer Center on Monday. Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and U.S. Senator Richard Durbin spoke at the ribbon cutting ceremony celebrating the new outpatient center, located on the 10th floor of the Rush Professional Building.
Mayor Daley praised the Rush University Cancer Center and the ongoing Rush Transformation project as continuing the Rush tradition of providing quality health care saying it represents the “I will spirit” of Rush staff, physicians and leaders to help the citizens of Chicago.
“Hospitals are the cornerstones of cities. This city has always stood by the expansion of hospitals for the betterment of the city,” said Mayor Daley. “If you don’t allow your great foundations to expand, such as this, you lose the vision of the city and it stays in the past,” said Mayor Daley.
Senator Durbin stressed how important the new modern facility is for thousands of people in the Chicago area. He had special praise for the new hospital building that he said has become a dominant part of the skyline of the City of Chicago.
“It is more than a building – it is an idea; it is a committment; it’s a value; it’s a determination to make sure that people without hope have hope – that those who need a helping hand, facing what may be the biggest struggle of their lives ,will find the very best medical care and research,” said Senator Durbin.
The center sets a new standard for patient-centered care by bringing together most of Rush’s cancer care providers and cancer treatment services into a single location triple the size of the previous center.
The new center cost $13.3 million to construct and more than $10 million of the cost was contributed by generous donors including a $5 million challenge grant from The Coleman Foundation based in Chicago.
The opening marks another milestone in Rush University Medical Center’s 10-year campus transformation that includes a new hospital building opening in January 2012.
Watch a video featuring highlights of the Rush University Cancer Center Ribbon Cutting Ceremony.
