The Cleveland Clinic wants to have a welcome center at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport to help patients flying in from other states and countries get to the hospital system.
The plan needs to be approved by Cleveland City Council, which introduced the proposed legislation Monday night.
The hospital didn't provide many details about what services would be provided, but Director of Port Control Robert Kennedy said it could help patients navigate ground transportation to find their way from the airport to the hospital.
“It’s a service for people coming in that made prearrangements with the clinic for helping them navigate ground transportation, clinic logistics, and so forth," Kennedy said.
The welcome center would renovate 480 square feet in Concourse B, which Kennedy said would be centrally located for all passengers. It could serve about 3,000 people each year.
“3,000 people out of the 9 million people that we will see this year is a small number, but it’s a number of people that need special attention," Kennedy said.
Patients travel to the Cleveland Clinic from all 50 states and 185 countries, clinic spokesperson Angela Kiska said in a statement.
"The welcome center would be open to all patients and their families for support and guidance as soon as they land in Cleveland," Kiska said in an email. "This project is in the very early stages of planning, an agreement has not yet been finalized. It is premature to provide details."
The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota also has a help desk in the Main Terminal lobby at Rochester International Airport. Mayo Clinic patients traveling into that airport can find appointment and transportation information related to their medical visit, according to a Rochester tourism website.
