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More Information on West Kendall Baptist Hospital
Scheduled to open in 2011, West Kendall Baptist Hospital will be a facility with surgical, emergency, maternity and diagnostic units. The hospital represents the first completely new, non-replacement hospital in Miami-Dade County in several decades.
The groundbreaking program, held September 13, 2008, included presentations from Brian E. Keeley, president and CEO of Baptist Health, the Rev. David Cleeland, chairman of the Baptist Health Board of Trustees, Tony Alonso, chairman of West Kendall Baptist Hospital's Board, Miami-Dade County Commissioner Joe Martinez and Ana Lopez Blazquez, chief strategy officer for Baptist Health.
"...driven to do the right thing and serve the community."
"I am very proud to serve as the new chairman of West Kendall Baptist Hospital," Mr. Alonso said. "Baptist Health's Board of Trustees is driven to do the right thing and serve the community. In a difficult economic environment, we're still building a new hospital."
West Kendall Baptist Hospital is slated to open with 80 beds and the capacity to quickly expand to 134 beds. The emergency center will handle more than 40,000 visits annually. Today, about 8,000 patients per year travel from West Kendall to Baptist Health hospitals for inpatient care, and over 20,000 travel for emergency care. In addition, the Baptist Medical Plaza at West Kendall at 13001 North Kendall Dr. treated almost 30,000 urgent-care patients last year.
"We are very excited to begin construction on West Kendall Baptist Hospital," said Brian E. Keeley, president and CEO, Baptist Health South Florida. "I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the West Kendall community which rallied and wrote more than 5,000 letters in support of this much-needed hospital."
"Our investment in the community is about more than building a hospital. Baptist Health is a not-for-profit organization that provides high-quality, cost-effective, compassionate healthcare services to all – including charity care to those in need," Mr. Keeley said.
Built to Withstand a Category 5 Hurricane
West Kendall Baptist Hospital will be built to withstand a Category 5 hurricane with winds of 180 mph. It will incorporate Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards in construction for environmental responsibility and sustainability.
Baptist Health, the region’s largest faith-based, not-for-profit healthcare organization, has more than 12,000 employees and is the area’s largest private employer. Baptist Health includes Baptist, Baptist Children’s, Doctors, Homestead, Mariners and South Miami Hospitals as well as Baptist Cardiac & Vascular Institute, Baptist Outpatient Services and Baptist Health Enterprises. Baptist Health Foundation, the organization's fundraising arm, supports services at all hospitals and facilities affiliated with Baptist Health.
"The new hospital will make it much easier for area residents to get to emergency care when time is of the essence. Over and over, we've heard from the West Kendall community that a hospital is desperately needed by this growing community," said Ana Lopez-Blazquez, chief strategy officer, Baptist Health South Florida.
A freestanding, four-story, 63,000-square-foot building for physician offices with an outpatient diagnostic and imaging center on the first floor will be adjacent to the hospital.
The construction costs for the hospital are expected to surpass $160 million. The Baptist Health Foundation will launch a capital campaign to raise funds for construction. For information about ways to support West Kendall Baptist Hospital, call the Foundation at 786-596-6535.