Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) has given Nemours the green light to continue construction of the new $380 million Nemours Children's Hospital being built at Lake Nona and slated to open in 2012.

 

In early September, the state agency officially informed the pediatric health system that the organization had successfully met its statutory obligation of continuous construction of its 95-bed children's hospital per certificate of need (CON) requirements. The CON, which was issued last February, had an 18-month assessment deadline of Aug. 18.

 

Construction on the 630,000-square-foot project began in June, with foundation work taking place in early August. The children's hospital will serve as the core of the 60-acre pediatric health campus. Also on tap: a children's clinic, emergency department, diagnostic and ambulatory programs, along with education and research centers.

 

The new pediatric healthcare system will focus on the unique and varied needs of medically complex children and should provide a comprehensive depth of specialized healthcare in Central Florida. Nemours' campus will have access to a full-line of specialty services and will also boost pediatric care via coordinated patient-centered medical services, biomedical research, medical and allied health training, educational programs, and pediatric prevention services and child advocacy programs.

 

"We've been working diligently to ensure compliance with our certificates of need," said Nemours-Florida CAO Jeffrey E. Green. "We've comfortably met this important milestone and will continue to work toward making this children's hospital a truly visionary destination for pediatric care in the community and beyond."

 

The Nemours Children's Hospital and pediatric health campus is strategically situated in the heart of Lake Nona's medical city, and is within close proximity to other major medical entities, including the University of Central Florida College of Medicine, Burnham Institute for Medical Research, Orlando Veterans Affairs Medical Center, M.D. Anderson Cancer Research Institute, and University of Florida research facility. The location was selected to encourage partnerships and to allow Nemours to capitalize on synergies between the various organizations at the emerging medical destination.

 

The new patient- and family-friendly hospital will incorporate high performance, environmentally-friendly, and sustainable design concepts into the design so the facility can achieve the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) certification.

 

Nemours continues its active involvement in the planning and design of the campus in various ways. For example, the organization contracted with well-renowned consultants who have expertise in healthcare design, such as Stanley Beaman & Sears, Perkins+Will and IDEO. Last year, system leaders formed a team to help design the hospital in a way consistent with Nemours' vision for the future of pediatric healthcare. The design team is comprised of nearly 200 healthcare business experts (internal and external), clinicians, architects and individuals collaborating to provide critical insight into pediatric care delivery for the new health system.

 

Nemours has also engaged the community in the design process by developing family and teen advisory panels connecting family members that have and or are facing complex medical issues. These individuals were selected to provide input and feedback on the appearance and functionality of the hospital based on their personal experiences within the pediatric healthcare system.

 

Skanska USA Building Inc. serves as the construction manager overseeing the construction process of the project. The local firm has tremendous international and national experience building innovative structures, and the Central Florida team brings strong healthcare facility experience to the project.