St. David's HealthCare invests more than $275 million to expand Central Texas infrastructure

St. David's Medical Center, Austin Texas. (handout)

St. David's HealthCare, a major provider in Central Texas, will invest more than $275 million in the region's healthcare infrastructure, the system has announced.

The projects include the acquisition and outfitting of a newly-built hospital in North Austin, a preliminary investment in a new hospital in Leander, a major expansion at St. David's Medical Center, and another major expansion project at St. David's South Austin facility.

The system and local leaders say rapid population growth in the area has created the demand for expanded services.

"The St. David's HealthCare announcement of a $275-million capital investment in Central Texas is important on a number of levels. With 60,000 people moving to Austin each year, we must constantly expand our healthcare infrastructure to keep up," said Steve Adler, Mayor of Austin.

St. David's HealthCare's new North Austin hospital

The biggest project for St. David's is the $135 million new hospital in North Austin that will serve as a specialty surgery facility. The 146,381 square foot hospital sits on an 8.5 acre property and also includes a 80,000 square foot medical office building and large parking garage.

It is equipped with 40 patient rooms, 10 operating rooms, six intensive care unit beds, and emergency department among other clinical and support features. The new facility is expected to generate roughly 130 new full-time jobs, and that number is expected to exceed 150 in the first five years of the hospital's operations, the system said.

Plans for the facility's opening are expected in the next few months.

Next, St. David's has purchased 52 acres of land in Leander, and will use $20 million to construct a freestanding emergency department in phase one, with future plans for a full-service hospital and medical office building. The new ED will house 10 to 12 rooms, will have advanced testing capabilities including radiology, and is expected to be finished in 2017.

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The ED is expected to hire 25 employees, and the future hospital could generate more than 200 jobs, St. David's said.

"Access to top-quality healthcare is essential to the long-term sustainability of our entire region," said Tony Budet, current chair of the Austin Chamber, said. "We commend St. David's HealthCare for making an investment of this magnitude, especially one that benefits all corners of our community."

At St. David's Medical Center in Austin, which is home to the Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Institute, $70 million will be invested to grow the number of medical/surgical beds and ICU beds, as well as expand the their cardiac electrophysiology program.

That project gets underway this coming summer and will yield a dozen more ICU beds, 24 medical/surgical beds that will largely be dedicated to the cardiac physiology program patients, a new electrophysiology center with 6 new lab suites and space for a seventh, and two more operating rooms, the system said.

The expansion will bring 50 new jobs, and an additional 90 over the following five years.

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Finally, $50 million will fund an expansion project at the system's South Austin Medical Center, yielding improvements in their emergency department and more patient care beds.

The ED will grow by 14,000 square feet, and gain 16 beds and other support capabilities. The Medical Center itself will gain another 26,000 square feet, including a new 34 bed medical/surgical unit that will be constructed as an additional floor at the top of the hospital's south tower.

The South Austin Medical Center's emergency department serves about 110,000 patients annually. The improvements are meant to help them accommodate the rising volume of patients and demand for services, and will also mean 50 new full-time jobs. That count is expected to double in five years, said St. David's.

The $275 million investment will be funded entirely from St. David's HealthCare operations, with no philanthropic dollars used and no debt expected to be incurred, the system said.

"As this region experiences rapid growth and as St. David's HealthCare develops additional programs and services, we are committed to expanding our network so that we may continue to meet the needs of the community with the highest quality care," said David Huffstutler, president and chief executive officer of St. David's HealthCare.

A patient room in the new North Austin facility

Twitter: @BethJSanborn