Sarasota Memorial Hospital (SMH) announced plans to move forward with the construction of a new hospital in North Port, FL.

The facility will be constructed on a 32-acre undeveloped site first bought in 2007. With the land purchase, the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board pledged to invest in the medical infrastructure needed to support a hospital in North Port.

The size, cost, and construction schedule for the hospital are still being finalized. Initially, SMH-North Port will open with approximately 100 beds, but will be constructed to have the capacity to more than double in size to meet local healthcare needs.

SMH-North Port plans to offer a comprehensive range of acute medical, surgical and specialty care, outpatient programs and diagnostic services, as well as space for educational and support programs.

The facility will be built with hurricane-proof materials and a back-up energy center with connection to the electronic medical records, clinical systems and specialized support of Sarasota Memorial Health Care System.

“Building a hospital in North Port has been part of our strategic plan and a longstanding goal of city and hospital leaders for many years,” said Sarasota Memorial Health Care System President & CEO David Verinder. “As we had hoped, the new Venice hospital is expanding and bringing our extensive physician base further south, which provides the support and specialty services we need to move forward with a full-service hospital in North Port.”

SMH-North Port will be the health system’s third acute-care hospital and the first hospital for the city of North Port. With a growing population of 80,000 residents, North Port is now the largest city both in land mass and population in Sarasota County, and one of the fastest-growing cities in the nation.

“The want and need for a first-class medical facility in the North Port community is palpable, and has been for many years,” City Manager Jerome Fletcher said. ”This meeting was just the beginning of the discussion, and the City looks forward to hearing more about how we can support the plans and the economic development opportunities a new hospital will bring to North Port.”

SMH was recently awarded a 5-star rating for overall quality from the federal government. The 5-star quality rating marks SMH as the only hospital in Florida, and one of only 33 in the nation, to repeatedly earn the distinction, according to the hospital.

Of the 4,500-plus hospitals that were evaluated, fewer than 14 percent of received 5 stars in the CMS ratings. In Florida, only 15 hospitals achieved the 5-star designation in 2022.

Source:  The Capitolist