Hackensack Meridian Health CEO Bob Garrett says the expansion of the system’s flagship hospital in Hackensack will “prepare us to effectively meet the growing needs of our patients and the communities we serve.”
Northern market regional President Ihor Sawczuk says it will elevate “the standard of health care not only in New Jersey, but across the country.”
And Mark Sparta, the hospital’s CEO and president, says it will “ensure Hackensack University Medical Center remains on the forefront of patient care, with cutting-edge operating rooms and modern patient accommodations.”
When Hackensack Meridian officials formally announced the transformation of the campus of Hackensack University Medical Center, it was as much about the ability of the hospital — and the system — to meet the health care needs of the future as the state-of-the-art facility itself.
And the facility itself is impressive.
As first reported in ROI-NJ last fall, the $714 million expansion will feature 438,000-square-feet of useable space in a nine-story tower.
The new pavilion is the first step in that process and will feature 24 new operating rooms, new and improved Intensive Care Unit beds, as well as three floors of private patient rooms. In addition, the building will include:
- New Second Street entrance/visitor lobby;
- A visitor center;
- A new central sterile processing department;
- 24 operating rooms, including an intraoperative MRI;
- 50 ICU beds;
- Shell space for an additional 25 ICU beds;
- 100 medical-surgical beds;
- 50 bed Orthopedic Institute;
Construction on the project will begin this summer. It currently is projected to open in 2022.
Hackensack Meridian Health board of trustees Chair Gordon Litwin said the expansion is symbolic of the system’s commitment to the community.
“This innovative project reflects our network’s deep commitment to better serving the needs of patients and families,” he said.
“This new pavilion will provide an enhanced patient experience, while preserving the privacy, respect and dignity our patients and families deserve. Our patients are at the heart of the work we do, and we will continue to pursue groundbreaking initiatives that advance the network’s world-class, patient- and family-centered care well into the future.”
The expansion also will help the next generation of doctors, since the hospital serves as the primary teaching site for the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine at Seton Hall University.
Garrett said the timing is right.
“As Bergen County’s first hospital and the largest provider of inpatient and outpatient services in the state, Hackensack University Medical Center has always been setting the standard for excellence in health care,” he said. “This is a major investment to elevate our best-in-class health care services and modernize our facilities to ensure we are providing patients the world-class, cutting-edge care they deserve.”
RSC Architects of Hackensack is the lead architect. It partnered with EYP Architects of Houston. Stantec Consulting is providing project management services/owner’s representative services for the overall project. The W.M. Blanchard and Turner Construction Co. has created a joint venture to provide construction management services for the project.
