CLERMONT — Dignitaries and officials with Orlando Health South Lake Hospital cut the ribbon on the new patient tower Thursday that almost doubles the size of the 147-bed hospital.

Included among the gleaming white hallways, mezzanine and memorial garden are exam and procedure rooms for the Center for Women and Babies and several specialty practices of the newly named Orlando Health Women’s Institute.

Speakers included Susan McLean with Live Well Foundation of South Lake which contributed a $50 million grant to the $145 million project, and Lance Sewell, Orlando Health vice president.

But the speaker who earned a rousing round of applause was Karina Martin, who praised the hospital for saving her life.

“About two years ago I was in postpartum when I had the worst headache of my life,” she said, as her husband and three young children looked on. “It was unbelievable.

“I couldn’t answer the simplest questions.”

She had all the symptoms of a stroke – one side was weak, her face was drooping, and her blood pressure was skyrocketing.

To make matters worse, bad weather delayed the Air Care helicopter from taking off from Orlando.

Eventually she was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center, where she underwent a three-hour surgery, spent a month in the hospital and later signed up for the health care system’s rehabilitation.

Throughout the ordeal, staffers made sure to comfort her husband and children. “I want to thank the incredible team, including Air Care. I am so happy to be here to celebrate with you.”

Sewell said planning for the expansion began five years ago, but it really began 31 years ago “when we realized we needed to move from a postage stamp-sized facility in downtown Clermont to an orange grove.” The old hospital was built in 1947.

A new high-tech meeting room is called the Skytop Conference Room, a nod to the name of the grove that once occupied the site.

Sewell, while giving a tour, pointed out several modern features, some of which came about with infection control lessons learned from the Covid pandemic. Curtains in the new intensive care unit have been replaced with a button that can turn transparent sliding glass rooms into a milky white screen for patient privacy. A nurse’s station computer will be placed between every two rooms.

Designers created an airy mezzanine walkway on the second floor. Ceiling lights have been moved to the side in hallways so patients lying flat on a gurney will not be blinded by the glare,

Some rooms are even designed to handle large patients – up to 600 pounds.

The women’s center includes two 3D mammogram units, a breast cancer treatment center, non-invasive surgical rooms and all kinds of OGBYN facilities.

It will handle all phases of a woman’s life, said center director Susan Worthington.

The biggest development may be coming to what is now an empty shell. Plans call for neonatal intensive care unit in 2025, Sewell said.

The expansion has led to a demand for more staff. Currently, Orlando Health South Lake has 1,600 employees, including at a new facility at Blue Cedar on U.S. 27 near an entry point to Florida’s Turnpike.

Sewell said the hospital is working closely with Lake Sumter College to hire and train new nurses. The hospitals in Orlando have residency programs for doctors.

The region is exploding with growth, including Four Corners. In Clermont alone, the city grew by more than 13 percent since 2000, from 43,021 to 47,456, according to the University of Florida Bureau of Economic and Business Research.

The company has about 25,000 employees in the Orlando area.

This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Growth in Lake: Orlando Health South Lake Hospital expands