With an expenditure of near $200 million and adding over 200 employees, Tampa General Hospital on Tampa’s Davis Islands opened a facility ready for every occasion. With an emphasis on comfort and convenience, the new center provides an increase in rooms and facilities, while keeping a ready eye on the potential for most any type of disaster Tampa could face.

For most patients, the convenience of 24 hour valet parking with the information of a pager provided upon arrival. Full registration take place at bedside. This expansion provides for more than twice the size of the previous facility. Six trauma rooms combine with 66 private treatment rooms. Comfortable seating and lounges with wifi are immediately there upon arrival. Waiting rooms have water views. Each room has a door for privacty. telephone, toilet and tv for privacy and comfort. The waiting room has a beach themed pediatric play and theatre area.

The colors and designs stay with a beachhouse and nautical theme, helping to chase away some of the uncomfortable feeling that a hospital visit can provide. The state of the art equipment is a source of pride among staff and has served extra assistance in recruiting new staff members.

While the appearance seems softer, the preparedness for possible catastrophic events is hard and ready. Located at 22 feet above sea level, every room in the new center is electronically and equipment prepared to handle double the planned patient capacity. Over 70 different additional locations exist for oxygen and other hookups. The parking garage is equipped with shower areas to handle over 25 an hour for hazardous material clean ups and assignment for medical care. Many rooms are equipped with negative pressure facilities to assist in handling infectious diseases or other matter.

With over 5 years in the design and construction process, a life size 3d model was constructed in order to recreate the feeling of what parts of the facility would look like and to evaluate functionality. 5,000 suggestions of various types were made and incorporated in the final center.

The expansion includes a doubling of the Aeromed Command Center. The helicopter program operates from three locations : Tampa General Hospital, Citrus County, and Sebring and makes over 2,000 flights per year.

Tampa General Hospital treats over 68,000 patients per year, about 100 major trauma cases each month. As the regions only level 1 trauma center, Tampa General Hospital has taken a major leap in providing even better patient care with their new expansion. The economic impact of over $200 million in construction and over 200 new jobs is also a significant boost to Tampa.

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