UVA Medical School News

By Eric Swenson
UVA Today

The University of Virginia Board of Visitors recently reviewed plans for a new comprehensive orthopaedic center that will consolidate the UVA Health System’s outpatient orthopaedic care – including outpatient surgeries – in a single, convenient location.

The approximately 195,000-square-foot facility, with parking located outside the building, is scheduled to open for patients in February 2022 on Ivy Road in Charlottesville, near the U.S. 29/U.S. 250 interchange. When it opens, it will be among just a handful of comprehensive orthopaedics centers on the East Coast.

“This state-of-the-art facility will enable our skilled team to more efficiently and effectively provide quality care for our patients,” said Dr. A. Bobby Chhabra, chair of UVA’s Department of orthopaedic Surgery. “Our orthopaedics care is nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report, and we believe our new center will be one of the finest facilities in the country to receive care.”

The new center will feature six outpatient operating rooms, where joint replacement and sports medicine surgeries will be performed. A recovery unit will be on site, allowing surgical patients to stay for up to 23 hours before being discharged.

“Patients used to take a week in the hospital to recover following a hip or knee replacement, but care has advanced so far that many patients can leave within a day,” Chhabra said.

The center will also bring together virtually all of UVA orthopaedics outpatient clinics that are now found at multiple locations around Charlottesville, including the UVA Hand Center, UVA Orthopaedic Spine Center, UVA Sports Medicine Center, UVA Joint Replacement Center, UVA Foot and Ankle Center, UVA Orthopaedic Trauma Center, UVA Orthopaedic Oncology clinic and the UVA Prosthetics and Orthotics Center. Orthopaedic clinical trials will also be available to patients at the center.

“At UVA, we saw nearly 30,000 more visits to our orthopaedic clinics in 2016 compared with 2010, so this new facility will make it easier for patients by providing one-stop access to our orthopaedic care as well as our support services,” Chhabra said. “The new location will be easy to reach for all residents of Central Virginia, including the UVA student-athletes that we help care for.”

A full complement of patient support services will also be available at the center. Imaging services will include MRIs, X-rays, CT scans, ultrasound and fluoroscopy. Comprehensive physical and occupational therapy services will be available on site, supplemented by surrounding fields and walking trails to help provide a wellness environment for patients, team members and visitors. A retail pharmacy and a café will also be located at the center. Orthopaedic administrative space at the center will include a conference room for community health education sessions.

UVA Ortho Center