Construction is continuing on the freestanding emergency department being built off Edgefield Road in North Augusta.
A groundbreaking ceremony for the facility, associated with Aiken Regional Medical Centers, was held Oct. 22, 2021.
Hospital CEO Jim O’Loughlin said Aiken Regional also has plans to open additional locations in North Augusta.
“We also are opening a satellite clinic in about four weeks on Georgia Avenue,” he said. “We’ve leased space and we’ll have our some of our specialists come out there. We are also looking at some additional property out there so we can bring more assets out to North Augusta.
Construction continues on a freestanding emergency department in North Augusta and a satellite office of Aiken Regional Hospital will open on Georgia Avenue in the next month. Photo by Dana Lynn McIntyre 
O’Loughlin said the ER at Sweetwater is on track for the projected opening in June 2022. It will provide emergency care 24-hours a day, seven days a week.
“We’ll need to hire more people which has been a challenge across the country. But yes, we’ll be looking for more people to be able to staff these assets are going out,” he explained.
The FED will be 11,000 square feet and will be staffed with fulltime physicians. It will have private exam rooms with radiology and laboratory services on-site.
After receiving initial treatment at the FED, if the patient needs to be transported to a hospital, the patient will choose where to go, either to Aiken Regional or to one of the hospitals in Augusta.
The FED is near the intersection off Austin Graybill Road and Market Plaza Drive in the area of North Augusta commonly referred to as “Exit Five” five due to its location off Interstate 20 in South Carolina.
