Staff are putting the final touches on the new home of Tacoma’s MultiCare Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital. The new, six-story building is set to open later this month, and hospital leaders are excited for the South Sound to have? its own, stand-alone hospital dedicated to caring for young patients.
For almost four decades, the children’s hospital has shared a campus with Tacoma General Hospital. Ben Whitmore, the chief operating officer of Mary Bridge Children’s, said sharing resources such as operating rooms and imaging equipment was sometimes inconvenient. Now that the two hospitals will have their own buildings, it will be easier for patients of all ages to get care.
“The space that pediatric patients were taking up at Tacoma General, now that’s clear for adult patients to have more access,” Whitmore said. “We truly are expanding access to care in this whole community for kids and adults.”
The $479 million facility is scheduled to open on May 16. The 82-bed hospital will includes a round-the-clock emergency department, eight operating rooms and a radiology department with advanced diagnostic equipment. It is also equipped to conduct advanced cardiac procedures and provide comprehensive cancer care.
Whitmore said a lot of care went into the design to make sure young patients feel comfortable.
“Kids are not just little adults. There's special needs that children and their families have,” he said. “We're now really excited to have a place for kids to get imaging care and operating room care dedicated just for kids.”
According to Whitmore, Mary Bridge Children’s is also projected to create over 250 new positions across its departments by 2028.
“That includes imaging and surgery services. That also includes nursing services throughout the facility,” Whitmore said. “The food and nutrition services team, the environment services, security.”
There is still a lot of work to do before Mary Bridge Children’s welcomes in patients, according to Whitmore. But he is looking forward to finally having “all the joys of running a hospital in our own space.”
