Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel opened the first patient rooms of their $78 million expansion today. The expansion which includes additional patient rooms, operating rooms and emergency rooms will be open by the end of the year. The new southeastern wing, like all the wings in the hospital, features all private, patient rooms. The rooms will initially serve medical patients but this area will become a dedicated women’s wing when the remaining new patient rooms open later this year. Previously shelled space from the original construction, the new heart catheterization lab (the hospital’s second) opened in March. The new C-section suite, relocated from the second floor to a new wing, opened last month.

“We are honored and excited to open these rooms so we can better serve our community. We know that our emergency room has been very busy and these additional beds will help reduce backlogs in the emergency room by getting admitted patients to a room quicker. Our patients are the number one priority and these new rooms, as well as the additional patient and emergency rooms that will open next month, will help us better serve the community,” said Denyse Bales-Chubb, President & CEO of Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel.

Additional patient rooms, new emergency rooms and operating rooms are scheduled to open in November. The hospital opened on October 1, 2012 with 83 all-private bed inpatient rooms, 18 emergency rooms, a heart catheterization lab, five operating rooms, outpatient imaging and other ancillary services. Adventist Health System, parent company of Florida Hospital, invested $161 million to build the hospital and adjacent Wellness Plaza which houses the Health & Wellness Center, Center for Women’s Health, Outpatient Rehabilitation and Physician Offices.

The expansion will add three additional floors to the hospitals center wing and a new three-story wing that connects the south and center wings. It involves 111,993 square feet of new construction and 10,834 square feet of renovation. Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel has also added a second Heart Catheterization Lab and will be adding additional emergency rooms, inpatient rooms, surgical suites, and recovery/observation rooms by the end of the year. The expansion will also increase Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel’s inpatient rooms and licensed beds to a total of 145.

The expansion will also create an economic impact within the community. Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel will be looking to hire more than 400 full and part time positions.

Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel is inviting the community to participate in the following:

• 10/1: We are asking the community to “Share Your Inspiration” at http://www.FHInspiredByYou.com.

12/9: Inviting community to participate in a virtual community event

Since Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel opened, the community has trusted the hospital to care for families and patients. This expansion is more than additional emergency rooms, patient rooms and operation rooms. It’s about Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel’s commitment to better serve the community. To learn more, visit: FHInspiredByYou.com

About Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel
Recently named the #1 Top Workplace in Tampa Bay by the Tampa Bay Times, Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel is an 83 all-private bed hospital. Built from the ground-up, this full-service community hospital features expert staff, specialty design and state-of-the art technology built for better patient care. The hospital features state of the art imaging and surgical equipment, much of it first in the region. Services include an emergency department, cardiac care, vascular surgery, orthopedics and sports medicine, women’s services and gynecology, obstetrics, urology and nephrology, outpatient imaging, outpatient physical and occupational therapy, The Center for Women’s Health and a free-standing Health & Wellness Center. The hospital’s Wellness Plaza also houses offices for primary care and specialty physicians. The hospital will begin construction on an expansion in August 2015 that will nearly double the amount of inpatient rooms. The expansion involves 111, 993 square feet of new construction and 10,834 square feet of renovation and is anticipated to be complete in December 2016. In the expansion, Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel will add additional emergency rooms, inpatient rooms, surgical suites and related surgical services, Heart Catheterization Lab, and recovery/observation rooms as well as shelled space for future growth. Part of the Adventist Health System, Florida Hospital is a leading, not-for-profit health network comprised of 26 hospitals throughout the state. For more information, please visit http://www.FHWesleyChapel.org.