New emergency medical center opening soon in Germantown

For years, upper Montgomery County residents needing emergency care have faced a very limited choice: trek southward to Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, or trudge 30 miles north to Frederick Memorial Hospital.

Either way, heavy traffic volume has made getting there a challenge. Once at the hospitals, overcrowding has been a substantial obstacle for patient care, especially at Shady Grove, where last year doctors treated 90,000 emergency patients, the second highest number in the state.