South Central opens 1st phase of new Surgical Facility

A construction project to expand South Central Regional Medical Center’s inpatient surgical facility and critical care unit has been under way since December of 2005. The first phase of the new surgery facility opened on March 31st.

According to Doug Higginbotham, Executive Director of South Central, the 32,200-square-foot facility is one of the finest in the state of Mississippi. “The surgeons and staff at South Central were actively involved in designing the new facility. We traveled to five different surgical program sites before making a final decision on the design of the facility at South Central,” he said. “With our remarkable growth in surgical services, it was important for us to develop an overall design that would include some of the most technologically advanced surgical components available today.”

Due to growth in inpatient volume, additional beds are needed in South Central’s Critical Care Unit. The new facility, when complete, will more than double in size from 8,000 square feet to 19,600 square feet. The 17-bed area will include spacious patient rooms, a new family waiting room, and a new family conference room. The unit will be located directly above South Central’s new surgical facility and is planned to open in the fall of 2009.

“By continually bringing advanced services and technology to the community, South Central Regional Medical Center has improved health care in this region,” Higginbotham said. “Local residents have shown their confidence in us by allowing us to serve them. We appreciate the support and the trust our community has placed in us over the years, and we will continue to work hard to maintain that trust.”