Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center Begins Construction on Inpatient Beds for Children and Women

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., August 31, 2016 Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center has begun a $10 million construction project to add 24 inpatient beds for women and 10 inpatient pediatric beds.

All 34 rooms will be private and, in the pediatric unit, parents will be able to stay with their child overnight in the hospital.

Adding these pediatric and women's beds to our fourth floor was a natural progression in expanding our continuum of care, said Becky Vernon, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center director of women and children's services. The entire fourth floor is already centered completely on women and children. When this construction is complete, everything to meet the needs of the women and children in our community will all be located on this floor, whether you are preparing to expand your family, having a baby, or have a sick child.

The fourth floor is currently home to Women's Care for pregnant mothers to receive prenatal care, the BirthCare Center to deliver babies, and pediatricians Dr. Shilpa Sulochana and Dr. Mihir Tolat for on-going pediatric care.

In August, the hospital opened a 16-bed Level II neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) to care for sick and premature babies. Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Centers new Level II NICU is the only one in Volusia County with private family-centered rooms, complete with sleeping and showering accommodations, as well as a refrigerator, so that parents never need to leave their child.

In addition, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center is affiliated with Florida Hospital for Children in Orlando. Through this unique relationship, the Daytona Beach hospital has access to Florida Hospital for Children's team of specialized neonatologists and pediatric specialists to provide the children of Volusia and Flagler counties with the highest quality care without needing to travel outside the community.

The architect for this 24,000 square-foot expansion is Orlando-based Hunton & Brady and the contractor is Robins & Morton, also from the Orlando area. Construction is expected to be completed summer 2017.

About Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center

Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center is a member of Adventist Health System, a faith-based health care organization with 46 hospital campuses and nearly 8,200 licensed beds in 10 states. Our locations include Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center in Daytona Beach and Florida Hospital Oceanside in Ormond Beach, as well as outpatient facilities in Port Orange, Daytona Beach Shores and New Smyrna Beach. With 293-beds, Florida Hospital Memorial Medical Center is one of the six Florida Hospitals in Volusia and Flagler counties that composes the Florida Hospital East Florida Region. As the largest hospital system in the area, the Florida Hospital East Florida Region has 923 beds and more than 6,000 employees. With a mission to extend the healing ministry of Christ, the Florida Hospital East Florida Region collectively contributed nearly $120 million in benefits in 2015 to the underprivileged, the community's overall health and wellness and spiritual needs, and capital improvements.