Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital on Tuesday unveiled the completion of the first phase of the hospital’s surgical services expansion, which includes the construction of a new three-story building that is home to the latest technology and process improvements that make it the most advanced facility in the state.
Phase I includes five new state-of-the-art operating rooms, including the state’s only intraoperative MRI and a hybrid OR. The hospital’s new Central Sterile Processing unit, which is responsible for cleaning and sterilizing all devices used in medical procedures at RWJUH, was also unveiled.
The project, which broke ground in July 2020, will enable RWJUH to meet the increasing demand for complex surgical interventions. The facility integrates the latest technologies and process designs to enhance quality, safety and patient outcomes, while also increasing its capacity to treat more patients.
“This project is a huge investment towards providing our communities with the best, latest and safest care possible,” Bill Arnold, CEO and president at RWJUH, said. “Our new surgical services platform is smarter, enables full integration among the clinical teams, and is totally optimized for infection prevention and reduction in errors. I believe it will attract even more top surgeons, nurses and clinical staff to the RWJUH team, and will enable us to provide more care to our communities, as well as improve the quality of that care.”
Phase I of this $165 million, multiphased project includes five operating rooms, one of which is a hybrid operating room. Within the entire project, there will be a total of 26 new ORs, three of which are hybrids.
Hybrid ORs are designed to allow flexibility for many different specialties, which enhances collaboration among surgeons, leading to the ability to treat more patients per day and to provide better access to life-saving technologies.
RWJUH’s CSP unit footprint has nearly doubled to 16,000 square feet in this expansion and is now located inside of the new facility. The new CSP has a custom-made automation system that is unique within the U.S., providing the best available technology towards infection prevention, patient safety and increased efficiencies.
