Northwest Specialty Hospital in Post Falls has opened the Northwest Institute for Digestive Surgery, says Dr. John L. Pennings, founder and director of the institute.

Located at 750 N. Syringa, the digestive center occupies about 10,000 square feet and is located mostly in Northwest Specialty’s medical office building, says Pennings. The building is connected by a corridor to the main hospital at 1593 E. Polston. 

The new institute is “designed to provide comprehensive diagnostic and therapeutic management to people with gastrointestinal disorders,” Pennings says.

Instead of visiting various doctors to receive diagnoses, patients can seek multiple services through the institute, all with the same few doctors, he says. Physician evaluations, diagnostic tests, endoscopies, pH testing, motility studies, radiology testing such as CT and MRI scans, dieticians’ analyses, and mental health therapy are some of the services offered. 

Pennings says gastrointestinal disorders often are complex and can require several different procedures to find the correct diagnosis and proper treatment. This often requires the patient to visit various locations and physicians for diagnosis and treatment, something Pennings describes as “a bit frustrating.”

“The main drive of the institution is to bring all the technology together under one roof so that there’s convenience and efficiency in patient scheduling, and to be able to complete the evaluation process in a timely fashion,” he says. “(Patients) can come to one place and one group of physicians, perform the diagnostic testing, arrive at the surgical treatment that’s appropriate, and do it in a time-efficient manner.” 

Two common gastrointestinal and metabolic issues the center treats are gastroesophageal reflux disease and Type 2 diabetes, respectively, he says.

The digestive institute employs 25 people, all of whom split time at the specialty hospital, he says.

Including remodeling and acquiring multiple pieces of new technology and medical equipment, total costs amounted to about $1.4 million. Young Construction Group of Idaho Inc., of Coeur d’Alene, was the contractor, and Medtronic, a Dublin, Ireland-based medical device company, provided much of the new equipment, along with multiple other vendors, says Pennings. 

Northwest Specialty Hospital opened in Post Falls in 2003. In February of this year, the physician-owned, for-profit hospital reported 34 licensed beds, 120 doctors, and 90 full-time staff for the Journal of Business’ Hospitals and Medical Centers list.

The digestive center is a joint venture between Northwest Specialty Hospital and Digestive Doctors & Surgeons, a physician group, Pennings says. Digestive Doctors & Surgeons provides the management and leadership positions within the institute.