Essentia Health planning state-of-the-art musculoskeletal center for Brainerd Lakes area

Essentia Health is proud to announce plans for a state-of-the-art musculoskeletal center in the Brainerd Lakes area. The Essentia Health Musculoskeletal Center-Baxter will expand care options for the patients we have the honor of serving across this region.

The clinic will be located at the site of the former Camping World, 14275 Edgewood Dr. It will provide approximately 50,000 square feet of space where we will supplement our existing services with new offerings specifically designed to meet the needs of our patients. The Essentia Health Musculoskeletal Center-Baxter will offer orthopedic surgery, podiatry, rheumatology, endocrinology, interventional pain care, sports medicine and more. It will provide comprehensive care, including diagnostic imaging —X-ray, MRI and fluoroscopy — treatment and rehab.

“We are always looking for ways to better serve the community we call home, and this investment will advance the care we provide our family, friends and neighbors,” said Dr. Christopher Metz, an orthopedic surgeon at Essentia. “This is an exciting opportunity to combine the best technology with the expertise of our team and deliver a wide range of care under one roof.”

The renovated space will feature 70 exam and procedure rooms as well as an indoor and outdoor rehabilitation gym. Patients will also have access to orthopedic urgent care, the first program in the region designed specifically to treat orthopedic injuries immediately; Baxter’s first drive-through pharmacy; expanded spine services to bring expert care to adults with back and neck pain, including our highly regarded SpineX program, which is designed to help patients with spine conditions by improving strength, flexibility and reducing pain.

An additional 50,000 square feet of space inside the building will initially be unused. Moving forward, we will evaluate how best to incorporate that into the clinic site.

All told, the new location will allow Essentia to consolidate our existing orthopedic services in the Brainerd Lakes area and expand our offerings to provide more complete diagnosis, outpatient treatment and rehabilitation for all types of musculoskeletal conditions in one convenient center of excellence.

Essentia hopes to break ground on this project in in the first quarter of 2025. Construction is anticipated to take approximately 18 months.