Sacred Heart Health unveils plans, fundraising for new children's hospital
Hospital will boast expanded, relocated pediatric emergency department and trauma center, expanded neonatal unit, new operating rooms, system says.
Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola
Sacred Heart Health System, a member of Catholic nonprofit health system Ascension, is raising money for a new, four-story children's hospital in Pensacola, Florida, the system has announced.
The Studer Family Children's Hospital will be funded in part by $55 million that have been committed by Sacred Heart and Ascension, with Sacred Heart raising the remaining funds from community supporters in order to complete all phases of the expansion.
The new four-story children's hospital will be constructed in front of the existing Children's Hospital at Sacred Heart, a 117-bed facility that serves as the only children's hospital in Northwest Florida.
David Sansing, chairman of the hospital's advisory council, said in a statement that the new facility would have a larger space that will provide specialized care to more children, create about 100 jobs in the Pensacola area, and yield inpatient care that will be faster and more efficient. New pediatric specialists are also expected to be recruited.
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The building will boast an expanded, relocated pediatric emergency department and trauma center, as well as six new operating rooms, which will consolidate all surgeries and procedures that require sedation into one area. The neonatal intensive care unit will also be moved and expanded, which officials expect will allow the hospital to care for more premature and critically ill infants.
Other features will include pediatric intensive care and oncology, new medical/surgical beds and extended stay/observation beds, a satellite pharmacy with in-house staff, a rehabilitation gym rife with physical, occupational and speech therapists, and new play rooms.
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The children's hospital is named in honor of Quint and Rishy Studer. Quint Studer is a consultant who has worked with 900 hospitals over a career spanning 29 years, and both he and his wife have been strong proponents for the development of Pensacola, particularly as it pertains to the care of children.
Twitter: @JELagasse
