Upgrades for Emergency Patients at Sarasota & Venice

Sarasota Memorial’s two campuses are revamping Emergency Care areas to better serve their growing number of patients

SMH-Sarasota recently opened a new pediatric waiting area inside its Emergency Care Center to help children and families feel more comfortable during their hospital visit.

The pediatric waiting room is designed to make the ER a little less scary for young patients. It is separated from the rest of the ECC by a glass partition and features child-friendly décor, toys and a gaming monitor to help young patients feel more at ease.

The new area is the latest phase of a larger ECC renovation project at the Sarasota campus designed to improve patient flow and clinical capabilities. Earlier this year, the ECC debuted a new public safety check-in desk and registration areas, and a redesigned adult waiting room with updated lighting, colors and artwork intended to promote healing.

The project’s third phase, slated to be complete this fall, will create space for two much-needed CT scanners. Currently, ECC patients must be transported to the Radiology Department to undergo CT scans. One of the new scanners will be up and running in the ECC this fall and the second CT will open later on.

**Top left:** Opening the new Pediatric waiting area in Sarasota Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Care Center are (l-r) Sarasota County Public Hospital Board members Sarah Lodge and Britt Riner, Child Life Specialist Jenna Maye, Pediatrician Katherine Keeley, MD, SMH Emergency Care Center Medical Director Reuben Holland, MD, Sarasota County Public Hospital Board Chair Sharon Wetzler DePeters, APRN, and SMH – Sarasota Campus President Lorrie Liang. **Top right**: Pediatrician Lisa Wittmann, MD, left, and Women’s and Children’s Services Executive Director Pam Beitlich show off some of the amenities in the new area.

Plans Under Way to Enhance Capacity & Placement of Emergency OB Patients

Changes also are coming to enhance emergency care for obstetrics patients at SMH-Sarasota. Four new patient rooms will be constructed on the Labor & Delivery Unit on 4 Courtyard Tower, boosting the hospital’s capacity to care for moms in early labor. Currently, pregnant patients with complications or in early labor receive care in the OB ECC, an area in the Emergency Care Center.

Due to increases in trauma and acute emergency patients, six of the OB ECC’s original 12 patient rooms converted to non-OB care earlier this year. The re-allocation of beds was a short-term plan to address capacity challenges.

The long-term solution, to open additional patient rooms on 4 CYT, will allow moms in early labor to receive care on the L&D Unit rather than in the OB ECC, enhancing the patient experience and providing greater efficiency for obstetricians and nursing staff. The new rooms also will allow patients to be moved out of the OB ECC more quickly once they are admitted. Construction is expected to begin at the end of the year and the new rooms will go into service in Spring of 2023. The new rooms will be opened in a support area on 4 CYT that will be relocated.

The OB ECC will continue to triage pregnant patients, perform prenatal testing and offer outpatient OB support.

Expanding ER and OR Capacity at SMH-Venice:

Less than a year after opening, SMH – Venice is continuing to expand its capacity to help meet the community’s high demand for care.

Fueled by rapid population growth in south Sarasota County as well as the expansion of services offered at the new hospital, patient volumes at SMH-Venice have exceeded projections since it opened in November 2021 and show no sign of slowing down.

The red outline in this conceptual rendering shows the SMH-Venice Emergency Care Center expansion, which will allow the ECC to more than double in size.

Construction is under way on a new patient care tower that will open in 2024 and increase the number of beds at the campus from 110 to 178.

Increased Demand for Emergency Care

The hospital also is moving forward with plans to expand its Emergency Care Center and Surgery Department. The revamp is urgently needed, as current emergency care visits have exceeded projections by 30 percent, and are expected to grow by an incredible 96 percent over the next 10 years. In addition, ShorePoint Venice Hospital recently announced that it will close next month, bringing an even greater number of patients to SMH-Venice.

Expanded Care for Stroke, Cardiac Patients at SMH-Venice

SMH-Venice also recently earned specialty certifications from the state that will allow the hospital to treat a greater number of stroke and cardiac patients. In May, the hospital was designated a primary stroke center, in recognition of its advanced care for stroke patients. Earlier this month, its Cath Lab was designated a Level 1 adult cardiovascular services provider, allowing it to perform percutaneous coronary interventions (minimally invasive procedures used to open clogged coronary arteries). While most stroke and cardiac patients will be successfully treated at SMH-Venice, patients who require highly specialized and complex procedures, including open heart surgery, will be stabilized at the new Venice hospital before being transferred to the SMH-Sarasota Campus, which has the state’s highest designations for stroke and cardiovascular care.

To help manage the increased emergency care volumes and boost capacity, SMH-Venice has hired additional staff in recent months, and now will focus on the construction project, which will more than double the size of the ECC.

The number of ECC exam rooms will increase from 25 to 52.
Two new trauma/resuscitation rooms will be added, for a total of four.
Diagnostic capabilities will be expanded, with additional radiology rooms and a new CT scanner.

To support the ECC expansion, SMH-Venice will increase its number of surgical suites from six to eight, and have the space to add eight more ORs in the future. The hospital’s current procedural areas also include three endoscopy/bronchoscopy rooms and two cath labs.

The ER and OR expansion is expected to be complete in 2024.