Children’s Hospital & Medical Center, a partner of UNMC, is building a 10-floor, 500,000-square-foot clinical facility at 84th & Dodge streets to accommodate growing demand for its services and improve pediatric care for patients and families.
At a private ceremony Thursday, Children’s shared project details, broke ground on the new structure and announced its name: the Hubbard Center for Children. It is named in honor of the late Dr. Theodore F. and Claire M. Hubbard, longtime Omaha residents and philanthropists.
“This is about much more than a building; it’s about improving the lives of children and families and improving our community,” says Richard G. Azizkhan, M.D., Children’s President & CEO. “As the only pediatric hospital in the region, we are often at capacity-and children are leaving our community for specialized care elsewhere. The Hubbard Center for Children will ensure those gaps are closed.”
The cutting-edge Hubbard Center for Children will be home to many of Children’s critical pediatric programs and services:
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (the region’s only Level IV NICU)
- Pediatric Intensive Care Unit
- Theodore F. Hubbard, M.D., Cardiac Care Center
- Surgical Services
- Fetal Care Center
- Emergency Department
- Short-Stay Observation Unit
Connected physically and integrated architecturally, the Hubbard Center for Children will stand between the hospital and the Specialty Pediatric Center. More than 70 new inpatient beds are planned for the center, with space for additional beds as needed. An attached parking garage will offer 1,000 stalls. The project also involves renovating more than 100,000-square-feet in the current hospital.
HDR is providing architecture and engineering services for the project; the Kiewit Building Group will serve as construction manager. Construction is expected to be completed in early 2021. The estimated cost of the new facility is $450 million.
With the Hubbard Center for Children, more robust programs and services will be possible, including enhancements to programs of national prominence like osteogenesis imperfecta, which draws patients from across the country and around the world. Planned areas of growth include:
- Colorectal Center
- Neuro-oncology
- Neurosurgery
- Fetal Surgery
- Expanded Pain Management
- Transitional Care
- Behavioral Health Medical Stabilization
- Larger Pharmacy
- Enhanced Radiology & Pathology Services
The Hubbard Center for Children will be essential in advancing Children’s commitment to research and education. “We believe that a strong children’s hospital will draw expertise from around the country; and that new facilities and leading-edge programs will allow our education and research efforts to flourish,” Dr. Azizkhan said.