After being closed for more than a year, the Fanny Allen rehabilitation unit in Colchester reopened Wednesday, University of Vermont Medical Center announced this week. The Fanny Allen inpatient unit closed in 2020 after air circulation problems sickened staff.
The 34-bed unit has had extensive renovations to its filtration, cooling and heating systems, and its air quality will be monitored closely, Stephen Leffler, the medical center’s president and chief operating officer, said Wednesday in a press release.
“We committed to return to this space only when we were sure it was safe, and are happy to be able to use it again,” he said.
Medical center leaders transferred patients out of the 34-bed unit in 2020 after reports of an odor in the building that made staff members sick. An outpatient surgery center that’s on the same campus also closed that fall for similar reasons.
The seven-bed surgical center will remain closed for now, spokesperson Annie Mackin said, but will likely reopen later this year once its air system gets fully updated.
The hospital’s Covid-19 testing clinic and urgent care services at Fanny Allen were not affected by the closures.
