MU Health Care administrators gave media a tour Tuesday of its new $232 million Children’s Hospital on University Hospital’s main campus. MU Health Care will officially cut the ribbon and open the hospital on Thursday.
The health care company previously consolidated its pediatric care at the Women’s Hospital on Keene Street. Youth patients will now receive care at the new Children’s Hospital, while women will receive care at various campus facilities, including University Hospital, after the Women’s Hospital on Keene Street officially closes on June 10.
Keri Simon, interim chief operating officer for MU Health Care, said the location is “very important and very intentional.”
Map showing the location of the new MU Health Care Children’s Hospital next to University Hospital and the Roy Blunt NextGen Precision Health Building. MU Health Care
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“When we began this process, we said the only way we are going to measure success at the end is to take advantage and preserve all of the things that are special about being a children’s hospital and keeping those things separate, but also taking advantage of all of things that are important about being attached to and close by all of those other services,” Simon said.
Refrigerators where nurses can pick up milk/formula mixed in the lab and deliver them to babies in the new MU Health Care Children’s Hospital. John Murphy
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The new neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) includes a state-of-the-art nutrition lab where specialists can mix formula and treat donor milk. It streamlines the process so nurses can pick up the milk/formula outside of the lab in refrigerators. The NICU at the Keene Street location only had 20 private rooms for babies, while the new NICU at the Children’s Hospital has 62 private rooms.
Dr. Dana Bichianu runs the NICU at the Children’s Hospital. She said the reason they tripled the number of private rooms is to bring babies and parents closer together, which can have a positive impact on the baby’s health.
“Babies respond very well to their mother’s, or parent’s, touch. They like it when parents read to them, sing to them, and (they are) especially very comfortable and happy and grow well when parents provide skin-to-skin care,” Bichianu said.
New NICU room designed for one baby and their parents. John Murphy
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The pediatrics floor is designed so traditional rooms can be transformed into ICU rooms to meet patient demands. The ICU-designated rooms are larger to accommodate emerging medical technology that could take up more space.
Hallway in the pediatric unit at the new MU Health Care Children’s Hospital. John Murphy
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The pediatrics floor at the new hospital has murals with animals painted on the walls.
Dr. Laura Hesemann, chair of pediatrics at MU Health Care, said these not only brighten the space and make it more inviting but also serve a practical purpose as psychologists can use the background to help young patients.
“This space was built from the ground up specifically for children, to keep in mind the needs of children and their families when they are in the hospital,” Hesemann said.
The pediatrics unit includes a Ronald McDonald House lounge where parents and families have a kitchenette, washing machines and dryers, and even access to beds in the hospital. The Ronald McDonald House is opening its new building on College Avenue in June.
Current MU Health Care Women’s Hospital on Keene Street in Columbia. John Murphy
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Simon said MU Health Care will continue to operate some outpatient surgeries at the Keene Street building for the near future, but plans for the long-term future of the building are not finalized. She said there are no active plans to sell or demolish the entire building, but added the organization could consider that in the future.
Simon added that all the employees from the Keene Street facility are now moving to the university campus facilities. She also said the company is hiring more employees than it had at Keene Street.