Summerville, SC (October 14, 2024) – Summerville Medical Center is thrilled to announce today’s opening of the hospital’s new surgical unit, which is the phase 1 of a Inpatient Tower construction project. The new 30-bed unit is dedicated to high quality post-surgical care. This $66.8 million project marks a significant milestone in Summerville Medical Center’s vision to be the healthcare provider of choice for the community they serve and is the latest investment of more than $250 million in recent years to expand their facility, services, and team to meet the needs of the growing community.

“Summerville Medical Center is situated in one of the fastest growing areas in Charleston, and while we work to meet the health needs of our community, it is vital that we also add capacity and clinical programs,” commented Stephen Chandler, Chief Executive Officer at Summerville Medical Center. “Every patient who enters our doors is our neighbor, a member of our church, the owner of a local business we frequent. They are the heart of our mission to provide comprehensive, high quality care for all those who need us, for many years to come.”

General surgeon Dr. Gerald Warren performed Summerville Medical Center’s first surgery the day the hospital opened in 1993 and recently had the honor of cutting the ribbon for the opening of this new unit. Over the past three decades, Dr. Warren has been an active member of Summerville Medical Center’s medical staff and has saved countless lives.

He commented, “When a patient is on my operating room table, I take a moment to think about how I would feel if they were my wife or son or grandmother. Every patient I care for truly feels like my own family. It’s been an honor to be a part of the hospital’s remarkable growth over the past thirty years and to be a part of a team who are so committed to our community.”

“Our weight loss surgery patients will be overjoyed for the new private state-of-the art rooms to ease their recovery after surgery,” said Dr. Logan Rawlins, Director of the Bariatric Surgery Program. “This project is a testament to the dedication of Summerville Medical Center to the care of our patients.”

“Summerville Medical Center is well on its way to establishing itself as a regional destination for minimally invasive and robotic spine surgery,” added spine surgeon Dr. Sabino D’Agostino. “This new unit will provide my patients with private rooms and the post-surgery care they need to recover quickly and return home.”

“We are constantly developing new approaches to better meet the needs of our community and this new unit will provide the clinical and care support resources more aligned to each patient’s specific post-surgery needs,” commented Theresa Kloewer, Chief Nursing Officer at Summerville Medical Center.

“It allows us to provide a multi-disciplinary, collaborative approach with providers and patients during their pre- and post-surgery experience all together in the same unit.”

This year Summerville Medical Center and Trident Health were recognized as Top 50 Best Hospitals in the U.S. for Surgical Care, Top 100 Best Hospitals for Spine Surgery, Top 100 Best Hospitals for Orthopedic Surgery, and Top 100 Best Hospitals for Critical Care by Healthgrades.

Project Details:

• Increases Summerville Medical Center’s licensed bed count by 40% to 174 licensed beds

• 30 Medical/Surgical private beds in the new 3rd floor post-surgery unit – opening October 14, 2024

• 14 Intensive Care Unit private beds on the new 4th floor – opening Q1 2025

• 12 Progressive Care Unit private beds on the new 4th floor – opening Q1 2025

• 5th floor shell for future expansion – opening Q1 205

• 64,000 square feet of new space

Summerville Medical Center is a 124-bed, acute-care hospital serving families in Dorchester County, Berkeley County and surrounding communities for more than 30 years. The hospital has a 24-hour emergency room, including a dedicated ER for children, and a wide range of surgical services and comprehensive medical services. Summerville Medical Center is recognized for its emergency, women’s and children’s, cardiac, imaging, orthopedic and stroke services. Surgical services includes gynecological, orthopedic, spine, reflux, breast, robotic and weight loss procedures.

Summerville Medical Center is part of Trident Health, which has earned recognition as a leader in the delivery of healthcare in the Lowcountry. For the second consecutive year, Healthgrades named Summerville and Trident Medical Center’s as America’s 250 Best Hospitals™, which places them among the top 5% of the nearly 4,500 hospitals Healthgrades reviewed for 30 quality indicators.

Learn more at www.SummervilleMed.com. For almost 50 years staff and physicians at Trident Health have provided acute healthcare services to families in South Carolina’s Lowcountry. Services are provided through its two hospitals, Trident Medical Center and Summerville Medical Center; three freestanding emergency departments, Brighton Park Emergency, Moncks Corner Medical Center, and Centre Pointe Emergency; and two urgent care centers, CareNow Urgent Care Goose Creek and CareNow Urgent Care North Charleston. Both hospitals have received top ranking as Joint Commission Top Hospitals for Quality Performance and are Joint Commission Certified for Advanced Heart Failure and Advanced Primary Stroke Centers. Trident Health is one of the South Carolina Lowcountry’s largest employers with more than 3,100 employees and has a medical staff of nearly 600 physicians. In 2022 it provided $50 million in uncompensated care and paid $41.8 million in local, state and federal taxes.

To learn more about how Trident Health is growing to meet the needs of our growing region and how to join our team go to www.tridenthealthsystem.com.