After 18 months of construction and community-wide anticipation, the new Florida Hospital Apopka at last opened its doors for business.
On the morning of Wednesday, December 13, 11 ambulances moved 18 patients from the former Florida Hospital Apopka campus on North Park Avenue to the new building at 2100 Ocoee-Apopka Road, which towers over the intersection of state roads 429 and 414.
The transference was set to begin at 7 a.m., with the first patient leaving the North Park Avenue location a 6:50 a.m., according to Florida Hospital administrator Tim Cook.
While relocating the patients, the emergency room signs at the former site were covered up, and the receiving area at the new location uncovered its signs.
The city of Apopka, through the Apopka Fire Department, and the hospital provided the 11 ambulances. On top of that, Orange County Fire Rescue ambulances – which were not part of the transfer – were bringing in new patients.
“We got several patients (from North Park Avenue) that already showed up, and, I think, three or four actual ambulance runs of patients that weren’t transferred. They’re actually new patients,” Cook said.
“We tried to anticipate everything that could go wrong,” he said, “and nothing really has gone wrong. The city has been a tremendous partner with us. The (Apopka fire) chief is here, and they’re an exciting part of this team.”
The 450,000-square-foot hospital includes 120 private inpatient rooms, expanded surgical services, advanced surgical suites and a catheterization lab. The seven-story building also features a 30,000-square-foot emergency department with pediatric-friendly beds, imaging services, a full-service cafeteria, a chapel and a gift shop.
The full story is on page 1A of the Friday, December 15, issue of The Apopka Chief.
