UF Health to open new neighborhood hospital in Ocala

University of Florida Health is bringing its warm patient care and nationally recognized medical expertise to Ocala with a new neighborhood hospital.

The 150,000-square-foot hospital will include 10 emergency department rooms, 10 inpatient rooms, a medical imaging center, four surgical operating rooms and other features. Construction is underway at a 28-acre site at Northwest Blichton Road and Northwest 35th Avenue Road, just east of Interstate 75. The facility is expected to be completed in spring 2024.

The three-story facility will also have an outpatient center for lab draws, the UF Health Rehab Clinic – Ocala, an anesthesia pre-operative center, physician office space and room for future expansion.

The new hospital is a natural addition that brings UF Health's highly skilled physicians and sought-after health care to the heart of Marion County, said David R. Nelson, M.D., senior vice president for health affairs at UF and president of UF Health.

"Many families in the Ocala area have entrusted UF Health with the care of their family and loved ones. Now, they will have access to quality emergency care, surgical services and an inpatient hospital even closer to home," Nelson said.

The hospital's emergency facilities will include seven emergency examination rooms as well one exam room each for triage and trauma. In addition to the operating rooms, the surgery center will have 12 pre- and post-operative beds. The imaging center will include two general x-ray rooms, two computerized tomography (CT) rooms, an ultrasound room and one magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) suite. On the second and third floors, patients will find physical therapy and rehabilitation services, the anesthesia pre-operative center and physician's offices.

To see a video rendering of the hospital, visit https://youtu.be/P8yCFT42gt0

The new Ocala neighborhood hospital is the latest effort to bring top-quality health care to residents throughout central and north Florida. In early 2020, UF Health acquired hospitals in Leesburg and The Villages®. In March, UF Health began an expansion that includes a second inpatient tower at its north Jacksonville campus. More recently, state officials recently committed $80 million for a state-of-the-art trauma center at UF Health Jacksonville.

UF Health Shands Hospital also has more nationally ranked adult and pediatric specialties than any hospital in Florida, according to the most recent U.S. News & World Report rankings.

Patients can take great comfort knowing they will have convenient access to emergency care and surgical services that are run by a highly respected, nationally ranked medical system, said James J. Kelly, Jr., interim CEO of UF Health Shands.

"Our patients continue to seek out UF Health for its unmatched commitment to medical care. It is especially satisfying to be able to serve residents of the Ocala area right where they live and work," he said.

Science Writer, Editor

Doug Bennett joined the UF Health staff in January 2015 as a science writer and editor. His topic areas include anatomy; biochemistry and molecular biology; molecular genetics and microbiology; pathology,...Read More