CLERMONT, Fla. – AdventHealth currently has 13 projects underway, spanning from Flagler County to Polk County, to keep with Florida’s booming population.
News 6 spoke with AdventHealth leaders at the site of a new Health Care Park in Clermont in Lake County, which opened just six weeks after a stand-alone emergency department opened its doors next door.
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“While we were under construction, we had people knocking on the door saying, ‘I want to schedule my appointment,’ So, it confirmed to us there was a need,” said Kari Vargas, CEO of AdventHealth Winter Garden and the West Orange and South Lake Market. “We just want to make sure we are keeping pace with the community.”
The hospital system is expanding out across Central Florida with 13 new projects, from a new Palm Coast Parkway Hospital in Flagler County to a new Winter Haven Hospital in Polk County. Each project is built specifically for that area. For example, the new emergency department and Health Care Park in Clermont is tailored to the athletic and Olympic community, offering green space for outdoor exercise and a gym for physical therapy.
‘This area is specific for sports medicine rehab,” said Joel George, director of Strategy and Operations for the Health Parks. “One thing we wanted to do is activate this space for those athletes that come in.”
It was the same idea when it came to expanding the new AdventHealth Winter Garden Hospital to West Orange County this summer.
“Orthopedics has been a recent opportunity. It’s a young community, the weekend warriors, there’s lots of kids and sports happening, so being able to continue to add programs and services that the community is asking for.”
Vargas said it’s not only demographics but future growth they look at when determining where to place a new hospital.
“We look at things like growth rates, we spend a lot of time speaking to physicians and our community,” she said.
Another opportunity for growth Vargas said is in South Lake County, not only opening the new Health Care Park in Clermont but also an entirely new hospital system in Minneola.
“We are seeing explosive growth in South Lake County,” she added.
Trucks roll on the mounds of dirt as development booms at the new Florida’s Turnpike Interchange. AdventHealth just purchased 30 acres for the hospital there.
“We anticipate long-term having a hospital at that site, right now focused on understanding the community and what are the services we can provide,” Vargas said. “Over the next several years as Central Florida is booming, we will continue to make sure we will serve our patients close to home.”
Here’s a list of all AdventHealth projects either currently under construction or ahead of groundbreaking across Central Florida:
Orange:
- Innovation Tower in Orlando (opening late 2022)
- AdventHealth ER at Flamingo Crossings Town Center (groundbreaking March 2022)
- AdventHealth Winter Garden inpatient tower (opening spring 2022)
- AdventHealth and Orlando Magic Training Center (opening summer 2022)
- AdventHealth – Holy Land Site plans
Seminole
- AdventHealth Lake Mary Health Park (opening in early 2023)
Osceola:
- AdventHealth Kissimmee patient tower expansion (now open)
Polk:
- AdventHealth Winter Haven hospital
Lake:
- AdventHealth Clermont ER and Health Park (now open)
- AdventHealth Minneola (land purchase)
Volusia:
- New Smyrna Beach – land purchased for new campus with hospital
- AdventHealth Port Orange Health Park (opening late 2022)
Flagler:
- Palm Coast Parkway hospital (opening in spring 2023)