Development
Health care
BY BRITTANY ANDERSON & KATY MCAFEE
BY BRITTANY ANDERSON
February opening planned for Texas Children’s Hospital in North Austin
County to begin design for mental health center The first design phase for a Travis County mental health diversion center will begin in early 2024, costing $2 million and taking about a year to complete. Diving deeper The mental health diversion center, spear- headed by Travis County Judge Andy Brown, will be an alternative to jail for people who commit nonviolent crimes and suffer from mental illness or substance abuse disorders. The facility aims to be a solution to Travis County’s growing jail population and rising rate of recidivism in people with mental illness who commit nonviolent crimes, county officials said. What’s next? While the design phase kicks off, commissioners and project leaders are still ironing out what
Facility outcomes
What’s next?
The new facility was proposed due to success with similar programs, such as Miami-Dade County, which saw:
Williams said while Texas Children’s owns land in South Austin for a potential future hospital, the initial North Austin project needs to be finished first in order to be able to invest in another campus. “We also know there’s a desperate need down south. There’s less down there,” he said.
68% fewer jail bookings
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94% fewer jail days for participants
Texas Children’s Hospital is gearing up to open its first Austin hospital in February. The $485 million project broke ground in early 2021. The new location will mark the system’s fourth hospital expansion and bring upwards of 1,500 jobs, said Russ Williams, senior vice president of the campus. “This is the 10th largest city in the country. There is absolutely no reason a child should ever, with unbelievably rare exceptions, have to leave here,” Williams said. Along with 13 emergency room units and an urgent care center, the hospital is set to offer a wide range of services, Williams said, including neonatal and pediatric intensive care, a labor and delivery unit, gynecological services, a sleep center, a heart center and renal dialysis.
Key features of the hospital
Domain Northside to gain new office tower Domain Northside will gain a new office space in the coming years. The details Consisting of a 400,000-square-foot tower and 600,000-square-foot parking garage, the project is still in its preliminary planning stages, representatives with developer Northwood Retail said. The project name and timeline are still being finalized, the representatives said.
Lower daily costs per bed utilized
10 intensive care unit rooms
Lower total costs per number of individuals diverted compared to traditional programs
Fetal center for fetal surgeries
SOURCE: TRAVIS COUNTY FORENSIC MENTAL HEALTH PROJECT/COMMUNITY IMPACT
LAKE CREEK PKWY
services will be provided when the diversion center does open. Discussions as to what services the center will provide once opened have included: • Suicide prevention or other determent programs • Connecting those admitted with medication, psychiatrists, psychologists or persons with lived experience
183A TOLL
Isolation rooms for very sick patients
45 TOLL
In-house pharmacy
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9835 N. Lake Creek Pkwy, Austin
SOURCE: RUSS WILLIAMS, TEXAS CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL/COMMUNITY IMPACT
HYMEADOW 12611 Hymeadow (512) 506-8401
NORTH 620 10601 N FM 620 (512) 506-8316
ARBORETUM 10515 North Mopac Expressway (512) 342-6893
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