Phoenix Children’s Specialty Clinic opens in Gilbert

GILBERT — It takes Brittany Miller of Queen Creek about an hour to get to Phoenix Children’s Hospital. Her 10-year-old daughter sees 16 specialists there.

But that commute is about to get a lot shorter with the opening of the new Phoenix Children’s Specialty Clinic in Gilbert. It’s near the Loop 202 Santan Freeway and Val Vista Drive.

“When I timed my drive from home it was 11 minutes, and that was awesome,” Miller said during the clinic’s ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday.

The 45,000-square-foot facility will service kids, like Miller’s daughter, with complex health conditions. It will also provide routine primary and behavior health services for kids.

The Phoenix Children’s Specialty Clinic officially opens in Gilbert. This new 3-story, 45,000-square-foot facility offers a full range of pediatric health services. ⁦@KTAR923⁩ pic.twitter.com/SAqTJu697d

— Griselda Zetino (@GriseldaZetino) January 9, 2020

Miller said her daughter was 5 weeks old when she was diagnosed with Aicardi syndrome, a rare disorder that occurs when a child’s brain does not fully develop. She said she’s at PHC “all the time” with her daughter.

“In fact, on my phone, if I googled ‘home,’ for a long time it would pull PCH’s address,” she said.

The commute to PCH has been difficult for her and her husband. They both work and have two more children.

Miller said she feels a big relief to have the new Phoenix Children’s Specialty Clinic so close to home.

“Having a world-class facility here of doctors who I trust and have the Phoenix Children’s mindset and focus on family just gives me a lot of comfort – and I know it [also] will for many families that live in the East Valley,” she said.

The clinic is next to the five-story Phoenix Children’s Hospital-East Valley set to open early next year. The 367,341-square-foot hospital will integrate expert pediatric services from Phoenix Children’s and maternity care from Dignity Health.

Dr. Jared Muenzer, chief operating officer for Phoenix Children’s Medical Group, said as the population of children and young families in the East Valley has boomed, so has the need for pediatric health services.

“This building truly is a significant expansion and it’s what’s going to allow us to deliver world-class healthcare across all of the pediatric sub-specialties,” Muenzer said, pointing to the new clinic.

PHC already has 13 clinics in the East Valley. The hospital’s president and CEO Robert Meyer said the new Phoenix Children’s Specialty Clinic will “dramatically increase our ability to provide care.”

He added physicians who work at the new clinic are being asked to live in the East Valley so that they’re there most of the week instead of only a few days.

The clinic opens for appointments on Monday.

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