- HCA Healthcare Florida this week debuted its latest freestanding emergency care center as part of its South Tampa Hospital
- The facility will serve as the hospital’s first freestanding ER unit while offering comprehensive emergency response care
- HCA Healthcare Florida has proposed a number of freestanding ER units across Florida, mostly in large urban regions
- A freestanding ER provides emergency medical services at a place outside a regular hospital campus. It is not attached to a hospital or may not be located near one.
HCA Florida this week opened a new emergency care facility in Tampa as part of the HCA Florida South Tampa Hospital. The facility will serve as the hospital’s first freestanding emergency room, offering comprehensive emergency response capabilities.
The new 11,000-square-foot emergency center features 11 beds and a trauma bay with full emergency services support including laboratory, CT, and ultrasound diagnostic services. The facility sits on a 3.5-acre site purchased from the Seminole Heights Baptist Church in 2020.
“This beautiful new emergency facility will fill the increasing need for access to emergency services in the heart of Tampa,” explains CEO Sonia Wellman. “We look forward to serving Seminole Heights and surrounding communities with quick access to quality emergency care.”
The South Tampa freestanding emergency room is one of several either recently opened or undergoing construction by HCA. Additional facilities are being built in Orlando and Panama City Beach, catering to regions with growing populations.
Many of the freestanding operations offer a full-service emergency room staffed by physicians, nurses and other clinicians, also including a number of exam rooms, and CT, X-ray and laboratory services. Of the cities receiving the specialized ER centers, they are among the first of its kind.
“We want to bring emergency care closer to where people live so that they don’t have to travel far to get help when they need it quickly,” said Dr. Shilpa Amin.
A $50 million facility for endocrine surgery was launched earlier this year by HCA Florida South Tampa Hospital. The new hospital has eight operating rooms and 15 private inpatient rooms, along with 33 separate operation bays for pre- and postoperative care.
Additionally, the new department utilizes radiology, nuclear medicine, laboratory, and pathology facilities, all of which are focused on the detection and management of tumors. innovative treatment is also available through the new space, including minimally invasive robotic thyroid surgery.