Spokane-based Plastic Surgery Northwest PLLC, an independent reconstructive and cosmetic surgery practice and medical spa, is stitching together the finishing touches of an extensive 21-month renovation project that's scheduled to be completed this month.

The 35-year-old medical office building on Spokane's lower South Hill has been expanded by 8,000 square feet, to a total of 20,000 square feet, says Dr. Chad Wheeler, who is part of the practice's ownership group.

"Part of our goal was to have an interesting, striking, and beautiful building," Wheeler says. "We provide cutting-edge, quality plastic surgery. We needed to look like that, so patients would have that expectation."

He says one of the goals of the $8 million remodel is to highlight the property and have the building look instantly recognizable from the outside. Designers were able to accomplish this by replacing a nondescript, gray building with an expanded second level, a more sleek and modern facade, and large, distinctive signage featuring the company's peacock logo.

Located at 530 S. Cowley, about a block north of Providence St. Luke's Rehabilitation Medical Center, Plastic Surgery Northwest's revamped building now has dedicated entrances for it's medical spa, dubbed Spa Pavone, and at the breast center and surgical center. 

Raymond Fox & Associates, of San Diego, is the project architect. Walker Construction Inc., of Spokane, is the contractor.

"For so long, people didn't even know we were here. I blame that on the building looking like a dentist office," Wheeler says. "We wanted to have a presence, so we sat down and designed this building so that it would be interesting. People would see it ... and know what we do here."

The exterior of the surgery center has been expanded and updated with separate medical spa and surgery center entrances, more parking, and a modern facade featuring consistent branding.

Client privacy and staff accommodations for Plastic Surgery Northwest's 80 employees have been a major focus of tenant-improvement plans.

The building expanded to 14 exam rooms, from nine rooms previously. The reception area has been reconfigured to provide private checkout space, and there are separate, individual quote rooms to discuss health care costs, where previously quotes were handled in exam rooms. There are also individual discharge rooms for patients leaving the surgery center.

Patients also will have access to a dedicated hyperbaric chamber, which uses a pure oxygen chamber to help heal damaged tissue and wounds.

"There's a lot of cool little features that we put in here," Wheeler says.

Employees will have access to a new conference room, restrooms, and a breakroom that leads to a rooftop deck, as well as revamped work areas and offices.

Other electrical, mechanical, and plumbing upgrades have been integrated into development plans that bring the building up to both Medicare certification standards and new Washington state Clean Building Act standards, he says.

Parking has also increased by a handful of spaces through the development process, Wheeler adds.

Dr. Janelle Sousa says the expanded surgery center will have the space to accommodate events that were previously held outdoors due to limited indoor space.

"We host a couple of events, most notably the BRA Day, Breast Reconstruction Awareness Day, in October," says Sousa. "We've previously done multiple iterations of it like parking lot parties when we didn't have the space."

Plastic Surgery Northwest is billed as one of the largest plastic surgery practices in the Inland Northwest with a staff of six full-time surgeons and two part-time surgeons. Wheeler says the health care facility serves clients from Washington state, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Utah, and some clients travel from as far away as Missouri and Canada.

"We provide services to a catch area of about 3.5 million people," he says.

Plastic Surgery Northwest is considered a high-volume surgery center, with over 500 reconstructive surgeries performed in 2023, he says.

Despite the volume, many people in the community aren't aware of its presence and much of the business at Plastic Surgery Northwest is referred by other health care providers.

"One of the main things that we do here is breast reconstruction following breast cancer," he explains, adding that the specialized procedure requires a surgical technique that takes six to 10 hours and involves using a patient's abdominal tissue as part of the reconstructed breast. "It's a very demanding technical surgery and  most plastic surgeons ... don't do that."

The complicated nature of some surgeries requires a team of employees to bill the procedures efficiently and correctly, provide follow up care, and coordinate with the patient or other health care providers. For instance, Spokane Valley-based Cancer Care Northwest; Renton, Washington-based Providence; and Tacoma, Washington-based MultiCare Health System all refer patients to Plastic Surgery Northwest for specialized microsurgeries, Wheeler adds.

With six full-time billing employees, Plastic Surgery Northwest has the capacity to consider contracting the department to provide billing services to other health care entities.

"Not only are we servicing our community, but we're starting to get big enough and efficient enough that we can help other communities," he says. 

The practice has a total of five owners, consisting of Wheeler and Sousa and Drs. Emily Williams, Christopher Pannucci, and Derek Fletcher.

Sousa says Plastic Surgery Northwest provides a full spectrum of reconstructive surgery for men, women, and children, such as trauma reconstruction for people in car accidents, congenital reconstruction for babies born with birth defects, and cancer-related reconstruction.

Some people often misconstrue the nature of plastic surgery and generalize the practice as a cosmetic indulgence, explains Wheeler.

"People get confused on what is a cosmetic surgery versus reconstructive surgery," he says. "A lot of people think that breast reconstruction is a cosmetic thing, but it's not. It's covered by your insurance just like any other health condition."