Construction will begin in 2026 on a $33 million, 24-bed expansion, adding capacity for critically ill children and establishing a dedicated cardiac intensive care unit, or CICU, according to a March 10 news release. The project will be completed in 2027.
The beds will be added to the hospital’s sixth floor, which was intentionally left vacant when the facility opened in 2007 to accommodate future growth. Currently, the hospital operates at full capacity and had to turn away more than 100 critically ill children in 2023 due to a lack of available beds. American Family Children’s Hospital is one of two Level I pediatric trauma centers in the state.
The expansion will bring the hospital’s total bed count to 131. Ten of the new rooms will be dedicated to the CICU, a response to a 46% increase in cardiac patients and a 23% increase in cardiac inpatient surgical cases over the past three years. Cardiac patients already account for 60% of intensive care occupancy at the hospital.
“This expansion is essential to enable us to meet the needs of children with the most critical and complex medical needs,” Nikki Stafford, president of American Family Children’s Hospital and system vice president of pediatric services for UW Health Kids, said in a news release.
