Florida Hospital Flagler Breaks Ground on $15 Million Expansion

PALM COAST, Fla., February 19, 2016 Florida Hospital Flagler broke ground on a $15 million construction project on Feb. 15 to add 32 new beds on the second and third floors over the hospitals emergency department.

As it is today, if someone visits the emergency room and needs to be admitted to the hospital, but we don't have a bed available, it takes longer to get that patient out of the ER and into an inpatient bed, said Florida Hospital Flagler CEO Ken Mattison. These additional 32 beds will allow us to ensure that when patients come to our ER and need to be admitted, they can be admitted quickly and much more efficiently.

Flagler County has seen tremendous growth since Florida Hospital Flagler opened in September 2002. According to a March 2015 report from the U.S. Census Bureau, the county's population recently surpassed 100,000. Additionally, Florida Hospital Flagler's average daily census has increased more than 25 percent from 2010 to 2014.

Our mission to extend the healing ministry of Christ compels us to honor God with the care we provide, Mattison said. To have the number of beds you need, as well as the equipment, staff, and training, all of these things are so important as we focus on honoring God. Candidly, this expansion is going to help us better honor God with the care we provide our community.

As part of the construction, the community will see changes to the traffic patterns, parking and public entrance to Florida Hospital Flagler's emergency department. The current emergency department public entrance will be blocked off and a new, temporary entrance will be designated for patients north of the current entrance. A tunnel will provide a short walkway to the temporary emergency department public entrance. Complimentary valet services will be provided during peak hours at the emergency department location.

The ambulance entrance to the emergency department will not be impacted at any point during the construction.

The architect is Orlando-based Hunton Brady and the contractor is Batson Cook from the Jacksonville area.

Construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2016 and will allow Florida Hospital Flagler to continue providing quality care for the growing community.

About Florida Hospital Flagler

Florida Hospital Flagler is a member of Adventist Health System, a faith-based health care organization with 44 hospital campuses in 10 states. With 99-beds, Florida Hospital Flagler employs nearly 1,000 caregivers. Florida Hospital Flagler is comprised of the hospital's main campus; Town Center Surgery, a freestanding outpatient center; and the Parkway Medical Plaza which includes a walk-in clinic, laboratory, imaging and women's center and physician offices. For more information, call Call386-586-2000 or visit www.FloridaHospitalFlagler.com.