Wielding a gigantic pair of scissors, Ken Bateman and Lauren Thomas cut through a pair of ribbons Thursday, Sept. 28, symbolizing the completion of SoutheastHEALTH's renovated 1708 Lacey St. building in Cape Girardeau.

Bateman, SoutheastHEALTH's president and CEO, and Thomas, its executive director of laboratory and outreach services, spoke before a crowd of several dozen in front of the building before the ribbon-cutting.

Then they invited interested business leaders and staff inside to check out the building's new features.

The cardiac rehabilitation center at 1708 Lacey St. features more space, new equipment and a changing room as per patient suggestions. It's one of several remodeled rooms in the building.Christopher Borro

The cardiac rehabilitation center at 1708 Lacey St. features more space, new equipment and a changing room as per patient suggestions. It's one of several remodeled rooms in the building.Christopher Borro

The $50 million renovation project was one of several new or revamped locations SoutheastHEALTH has worked on since the turn of the decade. These include a behavioral hospital, which opened in 2021, and a center for integrated services, which opened in January 2023.

The building will house MRI, cardiac rehabilitation, human resources, education and facilities management services. It will also feature a reference laboratory.

"While a hospital lab performs initial general patient testing, a reference lab has an expanded test menu with high through-put capable of testing thousands of lab samples a day sent from other hospitals, labs and institutions," Thomas said. "... The benefits we gain here are more efficient workflows, quicker lab result turnaround times, lower operational costs and higher levels of quality."

SoutheastHEALTH worked with Abbott Molecular Inc., an Illinois-based company, to supply high-tech equipment to the renovated location. The two organizations have a short but impactful history with one another.

"Southeast established a partnership with Abbott's laboratories in 2020 when we needed to bring COVID test capabilities to our region. The (Abbott) equipment allowed Southeast to continue to treat patients during the pandemic, despite multiple challenges, including supply chain (issues)," Thomas explained.

A crowd of spectators watch the opening remarks before the SoutheastHEALTH ribbon-cutting Thursday, Sept. 28. They were later invited to tour the newly renovated building.Christopher Borro

A crowd of spectators watch the opening remarks before the SoutheastHEALTH ribbon-cutting Thursday, Sept. 28. They were later invited to tour the newly renovated building.Christopher Borro

She said Abbott also helped the provider by providing instruments and services after a tornado struck SoutheastHEALTH's Stoddard County campus.

With their newest collaboration, the 1708 Lacey St. reference lab will be stocked with Abbott's Alinity family of instruments, which several other of their locations already have.

The Alinity ci-series integrated analyzer performs tests on blood, urine, body fluid and spinal fluid. It can perform up to 1,350 tests per hour in its chemistry portion and up to 200 tests an hour in its immunoassay section.

"We've introduced a lot of error-proofing into the analyzer so staff members that operate it don't make a potential mistake by loading the wrong solution into the wrong spot," Abbott ambassador Kimberly Rogosienski said. "... If you are a med tech, it's easy to just walk up to our equipment and operate it."

In the building's molecular lab, staff will utilize the Alinity m-series. This instrument can analyze 300 samples for infectious diseases in eight hours, providing a quick turnaround for patients in need.

"You look at the pressure on lab staff, and the more automation they can do, the more efficient they can be," Abbott regional sales manager Michael Culm added.

Also on hand is an indexer system that can track individual samples by rack from their collection site to the point of testing. Rogosienski said this virtually eliminates red bag biohazard waste because samples are already racked and tracked.

New equipment wasn't all the renovation the building received. The cardiac rehabilitation center was expanded to more than 3,000 square feet and redecorated. It incorporates new rowing and weight machines and a changing room.

A new training classroom on the third floor is the largest the building has had, with room for 60 people and retractable walls. Opposite it is an expanded skills room for new hires to work on a practice dummy.

The Lacey Street location officially opens Monday, Oct. 2.