St. Joseph’s Hospital-South in Riverview is underway with a $32.8 million construction project expanding the facility’s pre-op and PACU (post-anesthesia care unit) areas and adding a 20-bed observation unit. The 36,000-square-foot project began in early 2024 and is expected to open in the first quarter of 2025.
The hospital’s expansion underscores BayCare’s continued commitment to growing with the community and caring for families in the region. It also reflects a consistent trend of growth at St. Joseph’s Hospital-South, as the facility has completed multiple major expansion projects during its nine-year history.
“We have seen impressive growth in our Riverview and surrounding communities, and these expansion efforts will help us continue offering world-class services with room for continued growth,” said Michelle Landy, St. Joseph’s Hospital-South’s director of operations. “It is a true testament to our investment in our community and commitment to providing the highest levels of care.”
The pre-op and PACU project, which will expand from 17 beds to 30, will develop additional capacity and streamline care in the procedural areas. From 2022 to 2023, St. Joseph’s Hospital-South saw double-digit increases in robotic surgery (32 percent) and endoscopies (25 percent). Services in the procedural areas include bariatric surgery, cardiac catheterization, ENT (ear, nose and throat), gastroenterology, general surgery, gynecology, interventional radiology, neurosurgery-spine, orthopedics, pediatric orthopedics, urology and vascular.
The new 20-bed observation unit will provide specialized care for short-stay patients who require 24-to-48-hour monitoring from medical professionals. This unit specializes in the rapid treatment and care of patients with minor complications so they can quickly and safely be discharged home.
“During my time as president of St. Joseph’s Hospital-South, I have seen tremendous demand for our services,” said Patrick Downes, who became president of the Riverview hospital in July 2023. “Our growth and increase in patient volumes affects virtually every department in the hospital. I thank BayCare for recognizing this and continuing to financially invest in our facility so that we are appropriately positioned to meet the community health needs in southern Hillsborough and northern Manatee counties.”
St. Joseph’s Hospital-South opened as a 90-bed facility in 2015. Today, the hospital operates as a 223-bed facility. In addition to more than doubling its bed capacity, the hospital has added surgical operating rooms, expanded the ER, added a NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) and a pediatric inpatient unit and increased space for rehabilitation and respiratory therapy departments.
The hospital is located at 6901 Simmons Loop in Riverview. For more information, visit www.stjosephssouth.org.
