Novant Health says Forsyth Medical Center will benefit residents of Davidson County
What does better access to hospital care for patients in Winston-Salem and the surrounding area look like? A five-story, 193,000-square-foot critical care tower now under construction at Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center. The project will ensure Novant Health keeps pace with fast growth in the region and meet its mission for caring for the entire community.
The critical care tower will include 60 critical care rooms and 36 patient rooms designed to offer added privacy and abundant natural light. As a tertiary care referral destination, Forsyth Medical Center’s surgical services department will also feature completely redesigned operating rooms equipped with the latest in advanced technology to perform cutting edge and minimally invasive procedures, including brain, spine and heart and vascular surgery. Patients will also benefit from the critical care tower’s new pre-operative and postoperative care units, each designed to streamline and enhance the delivery of care from admission to treatment and recovery.
“Working within our existing footprint, Forsyth Medical Center has grown tremendously over the last decade, offering the latest in AI-enabled critical care and robotic-assisted surgery,” said Chad Setliff, senior vice president and president Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center and the greater Winston-Salem market. “Drawing on patient-centered design principles, the new tower will strengthen the seamless, high-quality care experience that our community deserves and facilitate our continued growth and innovation.”
To improve convenience and accessibility, the new tower will welcome patients and visitors with a completely redesigned drop-off and pickup area. The new lobby will be bright and inviting with floor-to-ceiling windows. Visitors will also appreciate the spacious new waiting room and notice that all signage, art and other design elements reflect the local community.
The groundbreaking expansion project comes exactly 58 years after the hospital was built. Construction of the critical care tower began earlier this year in coordination with design partners Gresham Smith and McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture with the planned demolition of the hospital’s former Rehabilitation Center, where the new tower will be built. A total of 93% of discarded materials were recycled, thanks to Novant Health’s sustainability initiatives. This prevented more than 11,000 tons of concrete, brick and scrap metal from ending up in a landfill.
The anticipated completion date for the new critical care tower is late 2024, but interior renovations will continue through 2027. All surgical services will continue to operate throughout the construction process.
Additional updates at Forsyth Medical Center
The new tower is part of an overall $400 million multiphase construction project initially launched in 2019, with phase 1 plans currently underway to enhance the women’s and children’s center, renovate the hospital's main kitchen and cafeteria, install a new central energy plant and modernize existing patient rooms.
Over the years, Forsyth Medical Center has helped to deliver generations of Triad families and continues to make innovation a top priority. The goal: Healthy mom, healthy baby. Each labor and delivery room has been spaciously enhanced to make the patient’s hospital stay more welcoming and home-like. Additionally, nine of the delivery rooms have also been outfitted with hydrotherapy tubs, and one room is specifically reserved for midwifery.
The next phase in the remodel is to relocate the mother-baby post-delivery unit, so all labor and delivery services, including the hospital's state-of-the-art 56-bed neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) will be combined into one convenient and quiet location within the hospital.
Patients and visitors will also benefit from Forsyth Medical Center’s plan to renovate the hospital’s kitchen and cafeteria. The redesigned cafeteria, which serves approximately 3,500 meals a day, will not only provide a more welcoming dining experience, but will also feature a new main entrance that will be easier to locate within the hospital.
Construction of the new central energy plant has also commenced. Once complete, the new energy plant will be able to efficiently heat and cool the 1.8-million-square-foot medical center.
To see pictures and video of the new expansion project, click here.
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About Novant Health
Novant Health is an integrated network of hospitals, physician clinics and outpatient facilities that delivers a seamless and convenient healthcare experience to communities in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The Novant Health network consists of more than 1,800 physicians and over 35,000 team members who provide care at more than 800 locations, including 15 hospitals and hundreds of outpatient facilities and physician clinics. Diversity MBA Magazine ranked Novant Health first in the nation on its 2021 list of “Best Places for Women & Diverse Managers to Work.” In 2021, Novant Health provided more than $1.1 billion in community benefit, including financial assistance and services.
For more information, please visit our website at NovantHealth.org. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
