PROVO — Rhonda Viers didn't have time to look for an affordable motel when she came to Provo last week.
Only two days after delivering a baby boy by Caesarean section, she and her husband drove up from Parowan to be near little Zackery Quade, who developed pneumonia shortly after his birth and was flown to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo.
As Zackery lingered in the newborn intensive care unit, the Viers worried about how they could keep watch over the baby without having to make a four-hour commute each way to see him.
Luckily, they found lodging for five days with the Family Guest House, a boarding service provided by Intermountain Health Care for out-of-town UVRMC patients and their families.
"It was good to have a place to rest," Viers said. "It was so close that I could just get up any time I wanted and go see the baby."
"We didn't have anybody to stay with," said Viers' husband, Michael. "It's just the two of us."
Like Rhonda and Michael Viers, more than 1,000 patients have benefited from the convenience of the guest house, which is located across the street from the hospital.
Built five years ago for the needs of cancer patients receiving radiation treatment, the center also houses parents of newborn babies that remain in intensive care, along with families with extenuating circumstances.
To qualify for one of the guest home's 12 rooms, patients or their families must present proof that they live a "significant distance" away, said coordinator Marie Benson. They must also verify that they have no family or friends in the area who could house them.
Once personal needs are confirmed, family members are assigned to a social worker from the hospital and given a key to what appears to be a typical hotel room, with two beds, a television and a laundry facility, but no maid service.
However, patients and families can reach Benson at all hours of the day, which isn't hard since she lives in a small apartment at the front of the center.
"It sometimes hard to be here all the time because you can't get away from work, but it's very fulfilling to know that I've helped people," Benson said. "I love this job."
Not only does the guest house provide quick access to the hospital, but it is an economical alternative for families, many of whom are struggling to cover medical expenses.
A one-night stay is $20. Outside parking spaces and hook-ups are also available for recreational vehicle owners at the low cost of $10 a day.
"The rates are very inexpensive, but sometimes we cover the costs for patients with special circumstances," said Kim Nielsen, director of the Celebration of Health Foundation, the organization that raised $1.2 million to fund the center's construction in 1999.
While most families only stay for a single night, Benson said several families and patients have lived at the guest house for as long as five months. Though they spend most of their day receiving treatment or keeping patients company, the families have time to bond with Benson and with each other.
"We would meet in the courtyard after hospital visiting hours to share our experiences. We would hold hands, cry and pray," said Mary Swan, who spent time at the guest house while her husband recovered from a heart attack.
As UVRMC continues to expand and provide more services, however, Benson said the center frequently turns away families or requires large groups to alternate nights in a motel.
Unfortunately, the lot where the guest house is situated provides little room for expansion, and any additional center would require significant donations from community, Nielsen said.
For those that have the good fortune of staying at the Family Guest House, the convenience of having a home away from home is priceless.
Arlene Burns also was grateful for the service. Burns, a Panguitch teenager, recently went into premature labor and needed an emergency Caesarean section to deliver her baby boy, whose umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck.
Little Braxton survived, but at nine weeks premature he needed serious medical attention and was flown to UVRMC. Burns and her mother stayed at the guest home while Braxton lingered in the newborn intensive care unit.
Deanna Hansen spent two weeks at the center after her son was born with hyaline membrane disease. "It was literally heaven for me," she said of the guest house.
"It was such a relief to know that everything was taken care of," she said. "I cried my eyes out, and then I slept."
E-mail: lwarner@desnews.com