By HFT Staff

Memorial Hospital of South Bend, Indiana, will build a 10-story patient bed tower that will comprise seven new patient care floors, a renovation and expansion of the intensive care unit (ICU) and the redesign and renovation of other areas and departments. More than 50 patient beds will be added when the project is completed in March 2026. 

Beacon Health System initiated a master facility plan process in June 2019 to evaluate its inpatient bed tower. The result is a plan that will redefine, and in some cases expand the space and facilities Memorial Hospital has available for adult critical care, adult acute care, emergency and trauma care, ICU, diagnostic imaging and outpatient surgery. 

The project will transform or touch almost every part of the hospital. Patient rooms will be larger, quieter and will have their own temperature controls, and they will be equipped with telemetry, remote monitored alarms and mobility lifts. Every room will also feature new dedicated family and visitor spaces. 

The patient tower’s expanded capacity and technologically advanced features will help meet the growing health care needs of the community and allow patients to remain close to home for high acuity care. Memorial Hospital offers the only Level II trauma center within 90 miles, the only children’s hospital and pediatric ICU in the region and the only air-medical transport in the region. 

Beyond the patient room improvements, the tower will feature improved ventilation, floors with negative-pressure rooms, new wayfinding for ease of access for patients and families and more natural light and outdoor spaces for patients, visitors and staff. A new central elevator bank will provide access to nearly all levels of the hospital from the main lobby.