The new, $225 million St. Joseph Hospital-South is located on 72 acres of land and is the latest addition to 12 nonprofit hospitals operated by BayCare, a health care provider based in Clearwater, Fla.

Located just south of Tampa, Fla., the new 360,000-square-foot hospital features 90 patient rooms, 22 private observation rooms, as well as a 32-bed emergency center with 10 beds dedicated to patients with minor ailments who need fast-track services.

The hospital also offers six operating suites with two designated just for women, as well as two interventional radiology/cardiac catherization labs and suites for general, orthopedic, urological and outpatient pediatric surgery. The full-service hospital also houses a 16-bed intensive care unit, eight labor and delivery rooms, and a 14-bed mother/baby unit.

St. Joe’s South was designed by Nashville, Tenn.-based Gresham, Smith and Partners, and its general contractor was Barton Malow of Southfield, Mich. The hospital was constructed with patient experience and comfort in mind, offering private patient rooms with full bathrooms and in-room family areas. To facilitate patient comfort and healing, patient rooms are carpeted, and the facility incorporates natural light, calming colors and tranquil images.

“It really does create what I think is truly a healing environment, not only for our patients but for families as well, which is just as important. St. Joseph’s is sensitive to the physical and spiritual needs of those we serve,” said St. Joseph’s Hospital-South President Scott Smith in a statement. “We are dedicated to healing the body, along with nourishing the mind and soul.”

On the technology side, the new hospital offers an array of services. They include CT scans, MRI, echocardiography, nuclear medicine, ultrasound, mammography, X-ray and fluoroscopy. The hospital has invested in other advanced technology, including electronic medical records with real-time access to patient results, radiologic images and transcribed reports. All patient rooms will feature telemetry monitoring and patients will experience easier registration through biometric palm scanning, a device that uses harmless infrared light to detect the pattern of veins in palms. It’s 100 percent more accurate than fingerprints, Nader Mherabi, the chief information officer at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York, told CBS News last October.

The hospital is also using robotic surgery via the da Vinci Surgical System, a robotic system that is a minimally invasive option for major surgery.

At the hospital’s Shimberg Breast Center, women will be able to receive mammograms, breast ultrasounds, and MRI of the breast and image-guided biopsies in a spa-like atmosphere.

The Franciscan Sisters of Allegany purchased the land for St. Joseph’s Hospital-South in the mid-80s because they foresaw a future need in this growing community. St. Joseph Hospital-South was built to be environmentally friendly and incorporates high-efficiency systems that reduce energy consumption, as well as building materials made of recycled content. The hospital aims to reduce its water use and has implemented an HVAC system that can improve indoor air quality.

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The newly renovated unit is located on the top floor of St. Elizabeth Health Center and includes spacious, private rooms for patients recovering from robot-assisted surgical procedures. Usually, when patients need special treatment when recovering from surgery, especially if it’s something they will need a long-term recovery plan for, they check into somewhere like the driftwood rehab center for specialized and dedicated treatment, but it’s great that patients have the state of the art recovery suit right where they need it. Renovations included the conversion of semi-private rooms to private rooms, the installation of new carpets, paint, wall coverings, signage and artwork, as well as new window treatments and furnishings.

“The space improvements were planned to provide a modern, comfortable and healing environment that correlates with the state-of-the-art technology to provide the best care for our patients,” said Wayne Tennant, CHFM, CHC, CHSP, CHEP,
EDAC, vice president, support services, Humility of Mary Health Partners

The center will offer robot-assisted surgery, which is one of the most advanced treatment options available for patients requiring surgery. Robot-assisted surgery is a minimally invasive procedure that is designed to result in less pain, blood loss and scarring, as well as a shorter recovery time.

“Minimally invasive surgery is something we believe very strongly in here at St. Elizabeth because it is better for our patients. This new unit, with its large, private rooms, will make our robotic surgery patients’ experiences here even more pleasant,” said Don Koenig, HMHP executive vice president of operations.

In 2007, St. Elizabeth Health Center introduced the da Vinci Surgical System, which at the time, was limited to urological procedures. Since then, the program has expanded to include general, thoracic and gynecological procedures.

St. Elizabeth Health Center is the only level-one trauma center between Pittsburgh, Pa., and Cleveland, Ohio, that is authorized and equipped to also treat pediatric patients.

The hospital’s cardiac, vascular and emergency services have been recognized nationally as among the best in the nation. Both St. Elizabeth and, its brother hospital, St. Joseph were the first hospitals in Ohio to achieve Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing.

The Magnet Recognition Program for Excellence in Nursing is based and administered by the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

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