Ascension Health, the parent organization of Dell Children’s Hospital, has announced a major investment in the hospital, including $300 million for a new building, equipment, and programming over the next three years.
The investment will result in a new four-story outpatient facility, named the Dell Children’s Specialty Pavilion. It will house cardiovascular, neuroscience, oncology, and maternal fetal medicine programs.
Dell said in a news release that it expects to begin construction soon open the building in spring 2021.
The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation is chipping in $30 million for the project while also calling on others to contribute. The foundation said, “we need community partnership and investment.” The foundation is running a fundraiser for the expansion effort.
“The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation grant will serve as a lead and motivational gift to be matched by additional supporters. The grant also represents the largest gift in the history of Dell Children’s and Seton Foundations,” says the news release.
‘All Children Should Be Treated Close to Home’
Dr. Aliya Hussaini, the Dell Foundation’s lead on children’s health issues, wrote in a blog post that the vision for the new project is “to ensure all children – regardless of the severity of their disease or complexity of their condition – have the chance to be treated close to home so families have all the stability and support needed at such a stressful time.”
She pointed to the partnership between Dell Children’s and Dell Medical School as important to the success of the hospital. The medical school and children’s hospital are located just across I-35 from each other.
“We have already seen proof of this successful partnership through the addition of highly regarded doctors and specialists who further strengthen the pediatric team being built on Austin’s Mueller campus. With these fortified clinical teams, the array of clinical conditions that can now be treated and the improved outcomes that can be achieved continue to expand.”
Dell Children’s Hospital is the only pediatric level 1 trauma center in the Central Texas region, and one of five in Texas. That means it has the specialists and equipment on hand to perform complex surgeries, including trauma surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, neurologists, plastic surgeons, and rehabilitation therapists.
