Celebrate grand opening of AdventHealth Waterman’s pediatric ER

The community is invited to join AdventHealth Waterman for the grand opening of its new pediatric ER, celebrating the completion of Phase II of a 111,000-square-foot, $85 million expansion.

The event is scheduled from 5-7pm Tuesday, Dec. 10, at AdventHealth Waterman, 1000 Waterman Way, Tavares. The new pediatric ER will officially open that day to patients 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Staffed by emergency medicine physicians and specially trained nurses, the eight-bed ER is designed to be child-friendly and scare-free, a news release states.

Visitors will have the opportunity to meet the medical team and tour the new facility. In addition, family activities will include free photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, ornament crafts, a live nativity scene and more.

This project is the second-largest investment in a health-care facility in Lake County’s history—since AdventHealth Waterman’s Tavares campus was completed more than 15 years ago. The construction doubled the footprint of the emergency department and grew capacity from 35 to 58 beds, making it the largest ER facility in Lake County.

The expansion also provided improved privacy and patient flow within the ER and added a 12-bed area to treat adults for minor care, such as lacerations, broken bones or flu symptoms. Patients in this area will receive rapid treatment, including physician evaluations and test results, and will be discharged to the comfort of their own home.

AdventHealth Waterman sees 67,000 patients each year in the ER, including 11,800 pediatric patients. Before this new unit was built, the closest pediatric ERs were in Ocala, Orlando and Gainesville, demonstrating the clear need for the new facility for Lake County families.

In May, AdventHealth Waterman unveiled Phase I construction on a new four-story patient tower, dedicated to emergency care, women’s services, pediatrics, inpatient rehabilitation and future growth. Phase I increased the number of beds from 269 to 287, and the hospital also opened 38 new ER beds. With the completion of Phase II, the hospital is opening an additional 20 ER beds, which include the eight new pediatric ER beds, the release states.

The second floor of the patient tower is home to the 24-bed Center for Women and Children and includes gynecology, labor and delivery, postpartum care and inpatient pediatrics.

The third floor will soon bring a brand-new health-care service to the Lake County community: a 12-bed inpatient rehabilitation unit that is scheduled to open to patients Friday, Dec. 13.

The fourth floor is shelled for future growth. The patient tower was constructed to support an additional future expansion and could one day add two more floors, bringing the tower up to six floors.

To learn more, visit watermanpedser.com or RSVP for the grand opening by calling 352.253.3634.