Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre begins construction of new Family Care Center

Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre is constructing a new Ambulatory and Family Care Center, which will offer primary and specialty care, the Catholic Health hospital network said.

The 16,000-square-foot medical office building will offer an expanded array of women’s and children’s services that are currently provided inside the hospital, the network said. A groundbreaking ceremony took place Monday.

"Mercy Hospital has a long history of providing families access to quality health care," Peter Scaminaci, president of the hospital, said in a statement. The new center "will further enhance the quality, compassionate care we offer," he said.

The project received $7.3 million in New York state funding and a $1.3 million grant from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, Catholic Health said.

At Mercy’s existing Family Care Center, pediatric specialists provide services in allergy/immunology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, hematology, infectious disease, nephrology, neurology and pulmonology.

In addition, the hospital recently expanded its telehealth services to offer maternal-fetal medicine care to high-risk expectant mothers, including those with diabetes, chronic hypertension, and/or preeclampsia, as well as mothers who need genetic counseling.

The patients receive Bluetooth-enabled devices, including a tablet with a camera, a glucometer to measure sugar levels, a blood pressure cuff, a pulse oximeter to measure oxygen levels and a scale, Catholic Health said.

For more information about the Family Care Center, call 516-62-MERCY (516-626-3729).

By Maura McDermott

maura.mcdermott@newsday.commauramcdermott

Maura McDermott covers education. Since joining Newsday in 2012, she also has worked on the investigations team and covered real estate and the business of health care.