Veterinary hospital announces expansion
Practice more than doubles its space after 3-year project
DOUGLASS (MONT.) » Sometimes you want a little extra space — and sometimes you need extra space.
That was the case with Gilbertsville Veterinary Hospital, 1538 E. Philadelphia Ave., Douglass (Mont.) A growing client base led to a lack of space, which led Mark Hanlon, medical director and owner and his wife Diane Hanlon, who is business manager for the practice — to make the decision to renovate and expand the facility.
“One of the reasons we decided to expand is that it let us better serve our clients,” said Mark Hanlon, who purchased the former Animal Hospital of Gilbertsville in 2003 and renamed it Gilbertsville Veterinary Hospital.
“It was a three doctor practice. We have expanded to a total of seven doctors. As the community has grown so have we, which is why we needed to expand,” Mark Hanlon said. “We were confined by the space in the old location.” The practice currently has about 5,400 patients.
Planning for the renovation and expansion began about three years ago, when Hanlon began working with architect Jeff Grogan.
“I visited other veterinary hospitals and took what we liked (ideas) and left what
we didn’t. We had one shot to do this project right,” Mark Hanlon added.
Construction began in January 2018. After a year of construction followed by six months of renovation, the veterinary clinic has more than doubled its space. It has grown from 3,000 square feet to 8,000 square feet; and from three exam rooms to six.
When construction started on the new section, the staff continued to work in the original space. When the new section was complete in January 2019, the staff moved into the new section and renovations began on the original space.
“The crews really worked to minimize the impact on our flow,” Mark Hanlon said.
“We had days when we knew there would be noise, so we scheduled light days, or held off on certain appointments for a day or so,” Diane Hanlon said.
By early last month, the integration was complete, and the 35 staff members, including seven veterinarians — and their patients — were able to spread out.
“It was fun seeing this all come together, from the blueprints to now,” Mark Hanlon added.
The additional space supports the couple’s mission of the practice — to celebrate the bond between pets and their people while providing the highest standards in veterinary care.
A “fear free” veterinary clinic, Mark Hanlon said he wanted the space to help minimize stress for the animals. To help with that, each exam room opens off of the lobby.
“There is less patient to patient interaction and so it is less stressful on the animals,” he said. “Clients can also check out from the exam room, instead of going to the front desk, where again there can be stress to the patient and the client.”
Just off the lobby is a special procedures room, tucked away from foot traffic and noise, where procedures like ultrasounds can be done. The space can also be used as a consultation room — or an additional exam room if needed.
“It is peaceful and quiet and out of the way, the lights can be lowered to ease the stress,” Mark Hanlon added.
Along a wide and long hallway are the entrances to the lobby and each exam room, as well as a business office.
“We try not to field calls at the front desk, letting the desk interact with patients while the business office handles scheduling and other calls,” Diane Hanlon said.
Taking up a portion of the hallway is an in-house pharmacy. Down the hall and away from everything, is an isolation room where animals that need to be kept away from the rest of the population can be housed.
A dog ward has space for 13 large breed dogs as well as eight small breed dogs. In a separate room is space for cats.
A large treatment area includes an ICU with four treatment tables, a dental treatment area, the lab and two surgical suites.
On the second floor of the facility is a conference room.
“We use it for continuing education and for team meetings. We are excited that we will be able to offer community events,” Diane Hanlon said.
Programs will include discussions about Lyme disease, flea and tick care behavior and general pet care.
“All the questions we field every day, we can offer a program on for clients and non-clients,” Mark Hanlon said.
The second floor also has a team lounge with a kitchen area, break room, and lockers for employees. In the basement is a radiology and practice storage area.
Mark Hanlon hasn’t always been a veterinarian. His undergraduate degree is in chemistry, and he spent seven years working in the precious metals industry before going back to school to become a veterinarian. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine in 1993 and worked at other clinics before buying the practice.
Mark Hanlon had praise for his staff and the crews
that worked on the expansion and renovation project.
“The architect and contractor had an understanding of what we wanted to create,” he added.
“The contractor did everything we asked and more. Everything was so thoughtful,” Diane Hanlon said.
In addition to architect Jeff Grogan, the contractor on the project was Gene Kropf of Kropf Construction Inc.