Dell Children’s Growth Continues
Dell Children’s Medical Center announces major expansion plans for Central Texas, including new children’s hospital in North Austin
Expansions also include new medical office building in North Austin, continued growth on Mueller campus
Dell Children’s Medical Center is excited to announce plans to build a new children’s hospital and medical office building in North Austin and continued expansions on the Mueller campus.
The new hospital in North Austin, along with planned expansions at Dell Children’s Medical Center and the recently announced Dell Children’s Specialty Pavilion, are part of a comprehensive, ongoing plan to continue expanding pediatric care in Central Texas over the next five years and beyond. Dell Children’s is part of Ascension Texas, which includes 14 hospitals and more than 100 clinic locations across Central Texas.
“Our goal is to make it so that children and their families never need to leave Austin for their critical care needs, which has become increasingly important in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Andy Davis, president and CEO of Ascension Texas. “In partnership with Dell Medical School at The University of Texas and community physician partners, Dell Children’s will continue to focus on ambitious growth to become a destination for all levels of pediatric care by strengthening existing specialties and developing additional pediatric complex care programs.”
Development of new children’s hospital
The new, full-service children’s hospital will be located on 34 acres at Avery Ranch Boulevard in Williamson County. Totaling more than 135,000 square feet, the hospital will include 36 beds and emergency and trauma services, with two operating rooms, endoscopy and procedure rooms, and sleep labs, and shelled space for future growth. The north campus will also include a 60,000-square-foot medical office building and dedicated free parking.
“The ongoing challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic have made it even more evident that we must continue to focus on expanding access to pediatric care so that families in Central Texas never have to leave home to receive exceptional care, especially for the most complex cases,” said Christopher M. Born, president of Dell Children’s Medical Center. “We are excited about this next phase of growth at Dell Children’s, as we have seen a tremendous need to continue expanding pediatric services since opening Dell Children’s Medical Center in 2007, and we remain committed to growing alongside our growing Central Texas communities.”
Construction on the new hospital will begin February 2021, and it is expected to open in November 2022.
Planned expansions at Dell Children’s Medical Center
Dell Children’s Medical Center will also expand the existing hospital by adding a four-story tower, totaling 72 beds with room for additional growth. The tower will include one floor dedicated to pediatric critical care, one floor for hematology/oncology inpatient services, and another floor dedicated to general acute inpatient services, with a fourth floor shelled for future expansion.
In partnership with Dell Medical School at the University of Texas, Dell Children’s is developing a maternal fetal medicine program within the hospital, which will include the addition of a delivery unit and neonatal intensive care unit expansion. Dell Children’s will have capacity for more cardiac intensive care unit beds, allowing the pediatric heart team to perform more surgeries and expand the program to include heart transplants for children in the near future.
Additionally, three parking garages are planned for Dell Children’s Mueller campus, which will include a total of 2,600 parking spaces.
Continued development of Dell Children’s Specialty Pavilion
Dell Children’s broke ground for the Dell Children’s Specialty Pavilion on March 4. As announced in February, the Dell Children’s Specialty Pavilion is a new pediatric outpatient facility located on the Dell Children’s campus adjacent to the existing hospital. The new outpatient facility will house world-class cardiovascular, neurosciences, and cancer programs to care for Central Texas children and families close to home. The project includes a four-story, state-of-the-art pediatric outpatient facility totaling more than 161,000 square feet. It is expected to open in spring 2021.
The Dell Children’s Specialty Pavilion expansion is made possible through a substantial investment from Ascension, and a $30 million matching grant from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation to help ensure that all children can be treated at home in Central Texas.
Dell Children’s Foundation, with the generous support of community donors, is spearheading the HERE campaign to raise vital funds to support the growth at Dell Children’s, including the new Specialty Pavilion. To learn more about the Dell Children’s HERE campaign or make a donation, visit SupportDellChildrens.org/HERE.