As momentum for Apex – WellSpan York Hospital’s campus renovation and expansion project – continues to build, we are excited to share additional information about the project, including a new, fully contiguous Women and Infants Center.

The new Women and Infants Center will include triage rooms, labor and delivery suites, operating rooms, ante and postpartum rooms, private and double-occupancy NICU rooms, and an area for family and other visitors.

The center will reside in renovated space on the connected fourth floor of the Century Building as well as an adjoining floor of the new Surgical and Critical Care Tower. The contiguous design will alleviate moms, babies and families from having to traverse different areas of the hospital. Additionally, labor-delivery-recovery-postpartum capable rooms will reduce patient movement between rooms.

“As we modernize facilities across our campus and construct our new state-of-the-art Surgical and Critical Care Tower, we also will take our Women and Infants care space to a whole new level,” said Kasey Paulus, Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer for WellSpan York Hospital. “Our new Women and Infants Center will not only benefit the York community but also the broader region, as we continue to serve as the largest Level 3 neonatal intensive care unit in central Pennsylvania.”

At the heart of the women and infants center design process will be staff and patient input, all with the goal of providing an exceptional birthing experience, creating a patient- and family-centered experience, and meeting special care needs. In the coming months, Women and Infants staff will be invited to tour full-scale cardboard room mock-ups and share their input and feedback with members of the design team.

Among the features being planned for the new Women and Infants Center are:

• A dedicated entry point in the new tower with an elevator that goes directly to the Women and Infants floor
• Larger labor and delivery suites, operating rooms, ante/postpartum rooms and NICU rooms
• Birthing options including spa-like in-room labor tubs
• Pulling in natural sources of light to create a healing environment
• Amenities for patients and families with longer stays
• Designated healing space for women experiencing pregnancy loss
• Labor-delivery-recovery-postpartum capable rooms to flexibly accommodate changing patient care needs
• Private and double-occupancy NICU rooms
• Team member spaces especially designed to promote efficiency and support learning

Transitioning to the new women and infants center will occur in a phased approach, beginning once the Women and Infants floor in the new Surgical and Critical Care Tower is ready for occupancy. A future phase in the planning process will involve new space for pediatrics. “WellSpan provides an unparalleled level of care for women and babies,” said Dianne Moore, Vice President of the Women and Children service line. “The new Women and Infants Center at WellSpan York Hospital will be an environment that lives up to that standard of care in both form and function.

It will be a warm, comfortable place that makes becoming a parent a beautiful experience and provides state-of-the-art care for moms and their little ones, with amenities that will further distinguish us as a hospital of choice locally and regionally.” As a regional center of excellence for advanced care, WellSpan York Hospital is home to the region’s largest Level 3 neonatal intensive care unit. The NICU provides the most comprehensive medical services for premature and critically ill newborns in central Pennsylvania. When compared with other NICUs across the United States, WellSpan consistently ranks higher than average in quality and patient outcomes.

Once completed, the hospital’s new capacity will make WellSpan York Hospital one of the 10 largest hospitals in Pennsylvania. Construction will take about two-and-a-half years to complete, which keeps us on track for an anticipated opening in 2025.