University of Michigan Health-West opens health center in Wayland

WAYLAND, Mich. (WOOD) — University of Michigan Health-West has officially opened its $10.4 million new health center in Wayland.

Construction began in March 2023 and wrapped up this month ahead of schedule. Patients have already been visiting the center for the last week leading up to Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.

“Wayland, you told us what you needed, we listened, we heard you, we delivered this great building which will serve the Wayland community for many years,” UM Health-West President Dr. Ronald Grifka said.

The center, located at 1113 West Superior Street , spans 17,300 square feet. It’s significantly larger than the medical provider’s old center down the road.

“We’ve outgrown it,” Grifka said. “It was small, outdated.”

With more space, University of Michigan Health-West is adding more specialty care, including sleep medicine, psychiatry, pulmonary and gastroenterology. In the past, Wayland patients would have been referred to other centers in the Grand Rapids metro area. The new center is aimed to “keep local care local.”

“Basically bring the needs of the people to where they are,” said Dr. Gregory Neagos, the interim medical director for University of Michigan Health Partners. “I think in a lot of communities, people defer care as opposed to drive for care. I think this will be a novel approach to have that all in one center that’s accessible.”

The center can also accommodate cardiology, endocrinology and women’s health specialties.

As West Michigan grows, UM Health-West hopes the larger Wayland center will help meet the additional need. Grifka said he aims to double the number of healthcare providers in Wayland from the previous location within the next two years.

“The community doesn’t have to drive to a distance away to get the specialty care,” Grifka said.

Neagos said the added space will allow the center to do more testing than before, including stress testing and pulmonary function testing.

It’s envisioned as a one-stop shop for primary and speciality care. Neagos said he hopes that long-term it will improve healthcare access and services in the community.

“I think the providers are excited to be in a new state of the art facility and we hope the community will embrace this and receive it as well as we are,” Neagos said.

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