A race for patients

Knee surgery, treatment for sleep disorders, ultrasound, and cardiac stress tests are among the day surgeries and procedures that will be offered at the sleek new facilities as two of the biggest names in healthcare square off in the northern suburbs.

“Here you have two expensive centers opening around the same time,’’ noted Alan Sager, a professor of health policy and management at Boston University. “It shows just how hard some hospitals chase one another.’’

In Danvers, the $85 million Mass General/North Shore Center for Outpatient Care is the single largest investment that Partners Health Care, parent of MGH, has made in the region since merging in 1995 with North Shore Medical Center in Salem. The facility, opened on June 1, is staffed by doctors from both hospitals.

“The North Shore has always been a very competitive market,’’ said Pamela Lawrence, senior vice president of strategy and planning at North Shore Medical Center. “The people have a lot of choices . . . We hope they choose us.’’

Lahey Clinic’s $50 million expansion in Peabody is its first major investment since the hospital opened 15 years ago in an old bank building behind Northshore Mall. A new 65,000-square-foot wing for outpatient services is due to open in July. Renovations are also planned for the 10-bed hospital in areas such as the emergency room and radiology department. Outpatient visits to the center have increased about 300 percent since the hospital opened in 1994, officials said.

“Demand for our services has outgrown our ability to provide them,’’ said Robert Schneider, senior vice president at Lahey Clinic, which is based in Burlington. “We’ve done very well here.’’

The new MGH and Lahey facilities follow the rapid expansion of teaching hospitals into suburban markets. It also comes as hospitals, under pressure to cut costs, increase outpatient services, which are cheaper than overnight hospital stays. Communities along major highways, such as Route 128, present a prime opportunity for growth, Sager noted.

“If hospitals increase their patient volume, revenue increases much faster than costs,’’ he said. “Hospitals are volume-driven. All the hospitals in the region are competing harder and harder for patients.’’

Competition has forced healthcare providers to deliver new and better services. Lahey’s three-story wing will feature centers for pain management, spine injuries, and sleep disorders. Those services now have waiting lists at Lahey’s main campus in Burlington, Schneider said.

“We hope to alleviate some of that backlog,’’ he said, noting that the sleep center will have four beds. “Sleep apnea is very common.’’

The MGH/North Shore Center has eight operating rooms. Areas are designated for breast health and cardiology services. About 50 doctors will be located in 80,000 square feet of adjacent office space, with most moving in over the summer. In all, 200 doctors will work at the facility. “This is a huge and very complex ambulatory care center,’’ said Elena Sierra, executive director. “Our goal is to have an improved and better experience between our patients and staff.’’

The cancer centers at Lahey in Peabody and MGH/North Shore in Danvers are outfitted with the newest technologies for cancer care. Chemotherapy rooms have been designed to provide more privacy for patients. Advanced radiation technology and healing gardens, which offer colorful and quiet respite for patients, are part of each center.

The new wing at Lahey includes the expanded Sophia Gordon Cancer Center, which for the first time will bring together medical and radiology oncology together in the same space, and will also have 18 chairs for chemotherapy treatment.

The MGH/North Shore Cancer Center replaces the former North Shore Cancer Center at Centennial Park in Peabody. The cancer center occupies 40 percent of the 122,000-square-foot MGH/North Shore facility. “It’s spacious, airy, and light,’’ said Francis Morrison, 82, of Lynn, seated in a recliner as medicine dripped into his left arm.

The center has 24 reclining chairs for chemotherapy, three linear accelerators for radiation treatment, a laboratory, and a pharmacy. About 125 patients are treated each day. Pink and purple flowers and a waterfall grace a healing garden overlooking the Waters River. It has its own entrance and valet parking. “It’s comprehensive cancer care,’’ said Dr. James McIntyre, director of radiation oncology. “It’s going to make for a much better delivery of service to patients.’’

Physicians offices are side by side. “We have easier access to each other,’’ said McIntyre, who has been at North Shore for seven years. “It’s a lot for us to just go down the hall to consult . . . We hope it’s a lot better for our patients, because it was designed for them.’’

Morrison likes the new look. “It seems more open and bright,’’ he said, looking out on a clear, sunny sky. “Being able to look outside while you’re here really helps when you’re feeling a little down.’’

He was diagnosed with prostate cancer 23 years ago. He was treated at Lahey Clinic in Burlington, before switching to Salem Hospital and the old cancer center in Peabody. “I’ve had every treatment in the books,’’ said the affable Morrison. “But thank God its a slow-growing cancer. I’ve lived a very normal life all that time.’’

Morrison now has treatment once a month for 2 1/2 hours. His first visit to Danvers was a pleasant surprise. “I walked in and saw the same people at the reception desk,’’ he said, smiling. “It was a good feeling.’’

Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com.