Ascension Saint Thomas Announces Investment to Enhance Midtown Campus

Ascension Saint Thomas has announced an overall campus masterplan to enhance clinical program development and access to care at Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown.

Since 2017, Ascension Saint Thomas has researched, planned and developed a 10-year Master Facility Plan to make necessary improvements to Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown’s large, urban campus. Ascension Saint Thomas identified a phased approach to project prioritization following a capital investment confirmed in 2019 and project launch in 2020.

Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown Hospital opened in 1919 as the Spanish flu took more than 7,000 Tennessee lives. One of the city’s first hospitals, the two-building facility was built on a 10.5-acre plot and grew to six city blocks of what is today Nashville’s Midtown neighborhood. A century later, in the midst of COVID-19, Ascension Saint Thomas is aiming to once again change the face of Nashville’s healthcare industry by enhancing features like the location of entrances, the way air flows through the facility and dedicated entry points to more easily screen patients and stop the spread of infections inside the hospital.

The Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown masterplan is designed to enhance access through the reconfiguration of the campus and simplification of parking and pedestrian access with dedicated parking, valet, patient welcome/registration and family spaces in a quieter, hotel-style environment. The masterplan will also increase community integration with a unique approach to urban design that incorporates nature into the campus landscape as well as an enhanced experience for patients, clinicians and associates with a “hospital within a hospital” model, offering an innovative boutique experience.

Aligning with Nashville’s changing downtown landscape, the new campus will provide a contemporary and accessible end-to-end patient experience, including modern architecture which fits the city’s new aesthetic.

The timeline of the clinical program development and enhancements across Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown’s campus will include:

2020:

• New OB Emergency Department
• New Surgery Center for Women
• Expansions to the Ascension Saint Thomas Cancer Center

2021:

• New Rehabilitation Hospital

2022:

• New Spine Institute with specialized surgical suites
• New Surgery & Critical Care Tower
• Cancer Center “hospital within a hospital”

2023:

• New entrance to Women’s Hospital
• New Medical Office Building

“Building on a legacy of more than 100 years, Ascension Saint Thomas is excited about the expansion plans underway at the Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown campus,” said Tim Adams, president & CEO, Ascension Saint Thomas. “In partnership with our clinicians and associates, we will continue to shape the future of healthcare in our Nashville community and Middle Tennessee.”

“The Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown campus will be complemented by specialized hospitals and clinical programs designed by patients, physicians and associates, with the most contemporary thinking on infection prevention,” said Fahad Tahir, president & CEO, Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown & West Hospitals. “The unique ‘hospital within a hospital’ approach will offer national-caliber, future-oriented clinical programs informed by Ascension’s national reach and capabilities.”

“The medical staff of Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown, Nashville’s hospital, is excited about this significant investment which will elevate comprehensive care excellence,” said Dr. Steve Capizzi, MD, Chief of Staff, Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown. “This is a thoughtfully designed, evidence-based approach that prioritizes patient and caregiver safety and experience.”

The investments in Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown’s clinical program development and campus masterplan include partnerships with:

• Rehabilitation Hospital: Kindred Healthcare
• Entrance to Women’s Hospital: Healthcare Realty Trust
• New Medical Office Building: Healthcare Realty Trust

Gresham Smith will be the architectural design firm for the Surgery and Critical Care Tower, new entrance for the Women’s Hospital and the new Medical Office Building. Turner Construction Company will provide general management and construction.