New UF Health North Campus Open for Business
Medical Office Complex Brings High-Tech Care to Community
For media inquiries call Daniel Leveton at 904-244-3268 or email daniel.leveton@jax.ufl.edu
UF Health opened its state-of-the-art medical complex in north Jacksonville today, bringing a wide range of services to the residents of northern Duval County, Nassau County and Southeast Georgia.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony at UF Health North marked the beginning of a new era in medical care for the communities surrounding the outpatient complex. The project’s first phase includes a full-service emergency room open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and featuring the latest in high-tech equipment and physician services, all geared toward giving patients the best care possible while continuing UF Health’s mission of compassion for those it serves.
“UF Health is extremely proud of the relationships we have with communities throughout north Florida, and this new campus extends our care and compassion to thousands of other residents in the region,” said David S. Guzick, M.D., Ph.D., senior vice president for health affairs at the University of Florida and president of UF Health. “Those who step inside UF Health North will immediately realize what a special place it is, not only because it offers the very latest in high-tech care but also the things we’ve done to make patients and their families feel more comfortable. It really is amazing.”
UF Health North, the only state-of-the-art outpatient medical complex in North Jacksonville, also offers advanced imaging and more than 20 specialty services provided by top University of Florida and community physicians.
The campus on Max Leggett Parkway is conveniently close to Jacksonville International Airport, River City Marketplace and the growing commercial area on and around Duval Road. The campus is also within minutes of the Duval-Nassau county line and Southeast Georgia.
“When we first planned this project eight years ago, I’m not sure if anyone realized just how special this place would be,” said Russ Armistead, CEO of UF Health Jacksonville.
“We have always been proud of the care we provide to everyone who comes through our doors but this facility brings it to another level, from the building itself to the people who will work here. I think the people of north Jacksonville and this region will realize that once they visit.”
Along with the full-service, 28-bed emergency room, the new 210,000-square-foot, six-story facility will also include radiology, women’s health services, five operating rooms, two endoscopy suites, two interventional diagnostic suites, 16 preoperative rooms, 16 postoperative rooms and 12 recovery rooms.
The medical office complex will also include physician offices for UF specialists in surgery, pain management, orthopaedics, cardiology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, pulmonology, urology, otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat), neurology, obstetrics and gynecology, occupational medicine, pediatrics and oral and maxillofacial surgery. UF Health North will also offer a sleep center and rehabilitation services.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for our faculty to reach out to another part of northeast Florida,” said Daniel R. Wilson, M.D., Ph.D., UF vice president for health affairs and dean of the UF College of Medicine − Jacksonville. “We believe the expertise our physicians and support staff provide is unmatched, and being able to offer those services to more patients is great for them and an honor for us.”
Community physician practices at UF Health North will include Park Avenue Dermatology, Beltone Northern Florida, 21st Century Oncology (cancer and infusion services), Kasraeian Urology and the Borland-Groover Clinic.
Among the more unique services, the new UF Health Birth Center will officially open in March. The center will be staffed by midwives and will offer women seeking natural childbirth in a home-like setting the ability to determine their own birth plan.
Other special touches include light wells throughout the facility, which will bring natural sunshine into the center of the building, and rooftop greenery and patios to give patients and visitors a quiet place to relax outdoors. Artwork throughout the facility was also commissioned with the visitor in mind, using an intracoastal theme with work from local artists.
The medical office complex is just the first phase of the new campus. Construction of a 92-bed inpatient hospital will begin in late 2015 and completion is targeted for mid-2017.
The operating rooms, imaging services and other parts of the office complex will serve as the core of the new hospital.
The new complex will also provide a boost for the local economy. Combined, UF Health North’s outpatient medical complex and inpatient hospital are anticipated to create approximately 350 new health care jobs. UF Health North has already generated hundreds of jobs for the construction industry, and it will have an ongoing impact on the economy through recurring supply and equipment purchases and will on the local area by bringing more people — and therefore more business — to North Jacksonville.