The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida Opens Extension in Cape Coral

The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida at Cape Coral
Hospital will be staffed by pediatric hospitalists and nurses who
are employees of TCH. Hospitalists are physicians who only
practice inside hospitals. “This extension at Cape Coral Hospital
will be fully staffed by employees of The Children’s Hospital. That’s what makes it different from being simply a standalone Pediatric unit. It is an actual second location,” says Kathy Bridge-Liles, RN, MS, Vice President of Women’s and Children’s Services for TCH.

The extension at CCH will open with 14 beds but has the potential for 24 beds. It is located in a newly renovated section on the second floor of the hospital.

TCH extension is intended for children with common ailments,
such as newborn jaundice, pneumonia or diarrhea, says John
Iacuone, M.D., Executive Director of TCH. Critically ill children,
such as those needing oncology care, will still be taken to TCH’s
main location within HealthPark Medical Center. “During the
past year, we have had to send children away from Lee County
for treatment because of lack of beds at The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida,” Dr. Iacuone says. “We didn’t have a way to add beds immediately, and we wanted to meet the needs of children and families in Cape Coral, North Fort Myers and all of Lee County. We wanted to serve these patients and keep them closer to home.”

Patients at TCH extension will receive the same level of care
as patients at the main location. “The staff will actually rotate
between the two locations of The Children’s Hospital. That way,
they will stay attuned to the same policies and procedures. We will provide the same high quality care at both locations,” Kathy says.

Kathy and Diana Sutton, RN, Nursing Director of Pediatrics for
TCH, have orchestrated numerous meetings during the past
several months to coordinate care with all departments at CCH,
from the Emergency Department and Respiratory Therapy to
Pharmacy and Radiology. “All of the departments will be equipped
and prepared to handle our youngest of patients and will be
collaborating closely with the staff at The Children’s Hospital,”
Dr. Iacuone says.

TCH at CCH was made possible in part by a gift from the Lee
Memorial Health System Foundation.

To learn more about The Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida, click here.