Osceola Regional Medical Center and Nemours Children’s Health System opened a state-of-the art Pediatric Department – expanding access to life-saving medical treatment for children in Osceola County. The $7 million facility includes a six-room pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) – the first in Osceola County.

 The 14,000-square-foot expansion more than quadruples the size of the previous pediatric area. In addition to the PICU, the department includes eight pediatric medical/surgical beds and a recently renovated Pediatric Emergency Department. The expansion enables Osceola Regional and Nemours to provide a more cohesive pediatric program through expanded specialist services and 24/7 medical coverage. The hospital also has Osceola County’s only Level II Trauma Center and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Level II (NICU).

 Nemours and Osceola Regional launched their affiliation in January 2016, when Nemours pediatric hospitalists began to care for patients at the medical center. With this expansion, Nemours will now provide pediatric intensivists and neonatologists.

 Osceola Regional, an HCA North Florida facility, is also staffed with dedicated pediatric ER physicians and a tenured team of local pediatric and family-practice physicians.

 “As Osceola County grows at a rate nearly three times the state average, Osceola Regional seeks to meet the needs of our diverse and dynamic community, including young families,” said Robert Krieger, CEO of Osceola Regional Medical Center and Hunter’s Creek ER. “We are honored to earn the trust of these families by providing their children with quality, compassionate care.”

“Nemours is committed to bringing our world-class pediatric specialists closer to Florida families,” said Robert Bridges, chief executive of Florida operations for Nemours. “We are proud that this expansion of our relationship with Osceola Regional Medical Center will help more children stay in their own community when they need to be hospitalized.”