Wall-breaking ceremony marks start of renovation, expansion of Beaufort Memorial’s surgical pavilion
From staff reports
Beaufort Memorial Hospital (BMH) hosted special guest U. S. Senator Lindsey Graham at a ceremonial wall-breaking to kick-off construction of a multi-million-dollar renovation and expansion of its Surgical Pavilion in Beaufort.
The project was made possible in part with funding championed by Graham.
“This money came from the American taxpayer,” Graham said. “It is not my money, it is your money. It’s my job to decide how to spend your money, and I think I made a great decision to bring it here to Beaufort.”
“We are all very excited to begin construction of this critically important project,” BMH President and CEO Russell Baxley said. “Modernizing and expanding our facilities will allow us to serve more patients more efficiently and offer new and innovative procedures that community members would previously have had to travel to receive.”
The project includes the addition of two state-of-the-art surgical suites to address the growing demand for advanced procedures, as well as enlarging existing suites to accommodate the latest technologies and optimize the surgical process, as well as the renovation of pre- and post-operating care areas to streamline patient flow.
Hospital officials began planning this project in 2018, working with the medical staff and architects to identify the space, technology and equipment needs to meet the area’s current and growing surgical demands.
“For many patients the OR is a crucial step in the process toward mobility, healing and a better quality of life,” said Dr. Chad Tober, a board-certified vascular surgeon and physician champion for the project. “As a surgeon and longtime Beaufort County resident, I am both excited about and grateful for the bright future of surgical care in our community.”
“The bottom line is, having two additional surgical suites will meet demand that is real, will make it easier to hire staff in the future, and will bring about a quality of life in the community that I think will more than justify the amount of money being spent,” Graham said.
As part of the improvements the hospital recently installed the latest da Vinci XI Surgical System, giving surgeons improved visibility and even greater precision when performing the more than a dozen minimally invasive surgical procedures with robotic assistance. Beaufort Memorial Hospital was the first healthcare provider in the area to perform hysterectomies using the da Vinci Surgical System more than 15 years ago.
One of only three South Carolina hospitals with advanced certification for hip and knee replacement from The Joint Commission, Beaufort Memorial also recently added a second cutting-edge Mako SmartRobotics Surgery System and its first DePuy VELYS Robotic-Assisted System for joint replacement. This technology allows orthopedic surgeons to create a surgical plan unique to a patient’s anatomy, and then use the robotic arm to implant the components with greater precision, leading to better function and more natural movement.
“As a surgeon this whole project is very exciting because it will offer a better surgical environment for us, as well as the space to continue to innovate,” said Dr. Edward Blocker, board-certified orthopedic surgeon, and chairman of orthopedics at BMH. Other additions include equipment for sterile processing, anesthesia machines; laparoscopic tools; transport monitors, and more.
“We are very excited about the renovations and new construction at the Surgical Pavilion,” said Director of Peri-operative Services Denise Lindsey, MSN, RN, CNOR, NE-BC. “This new operating room space will provide more flexibility, functionality and improved workflows, allowing our surgeons and their teams to accommodate more complex and minimally invasive procedures.”
Beaufort Memorial received approximately $18 million in federal funds for the project, as part of the 2022 Omnibus Bill passed to provide support for critical infrastructure projects throughout the nation, including more than $150 million in funds for Beaufort County.
As the fundraising arm of the not-for-profit hospital, the Beaufort Memorial Foundation began working with donors to solicit donations for the multi-million-dollar effort shortly after planning started in 2018. The $4.3 million raised by the Foundation, including more than $1 million earmarked proceeds from its annual Valentine Ball, will cover most of the increase seen in construction costs since the project was submitted through the state’s certificate of need (CON) application process.
The hospital’s CON application for the project was approved by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) in March 2022. The final application to receive the Omnibus Bill funding was completed in May 2022. Required equipment and mechanical system upgrades have been progressing since then in preparation for the five phases of construction that are expected to be completed over the next three years.
