LAKELAND, FL — After more than six years of planning and construction, Orlando Health Watson Clinic Lakeland Highlands Hospital is preparing to open its doors in July, bringing a major expansion of healthcare services to Polk County. The $500 million investment is expected to improve access to advanced medical care while creating hundreds of new career opportunities.
The seven-story hospital sits on nearly 80 acres and spans 558,233 square feet. It features 306 inpatient beds, 49 emergency department beds, and has hired approximately 1,500 employees. Hospital officials say employee wages are above the average market salary in Polk County, and the hospital offers full scholarship programs for both full-time and part-time employees to support workforce development.
The facility is equipped with advanced medical technology, including two cardiac catheterization labs, a 3-Tesla MRI system, and a biplane imaging system used to diagnose and treat strokes, brain aneurysms, and other complex neurological conditions.
For mothers and newborns, the hospital includes eight labor and delivery beds, 28 postpartum rooms, two Cesarean-section operating rooms, and two labor tubs designed to enhance the childbirth experience. A Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) with 12 beds is scheduled to open this fall, providing specialized care for premature and critically ill newborns.
Hospital President Carlos Carrasco said the partnership between Orlando Health and Watson Clinic combines trusted local physicians with expanded specialty care and cutting-edge technology to better serve the growing region.
The hospital marks the first new hospital to open in Lakeland in more than a century and is Orlando Health’s 50th facility in Florida. Orlando Health also announced that a new freestanding emergency department in North Lakeland is expected to open in October, further expanding access to emergency care.
Our news team toured the new hospital Thursday morning and was impressed by the facility’s state-of-the-art design, advanced technology, and patient-focused amenities. The hospital represents a significant investment in the future of healthcare in Polk County, and we believe it will be a tremendous benefit to the community.
SOURCE: Orlando Health Watson Clinic Lakeland Highlands Hospital
