Round Rock Edition | June 2023

2023 HEALTH CARE EDITION

BOLSTERING SERVICES

A RACE TO KEEP UP The number of physicians in Travis and Williamson counties has grown in recent years to keep pace with population growth.

REGIONAL PROJECTS

Expansions underway at several Round Rock hospitals will bring types of care that were previously scarce or completely absent in the region. Some examples are:

ASCENSION SETON WOMEN’S HEALTH TOWER • $320 million investment • Completion expected in spring 2025 DELL CHILDREN’S MEDICAL CENTER NORTH AUSTIN CAMPUS • Opened in April ST. DAVID’S NORTH AUSTIN WOMEN’S

Travis County

Williamson County

4,495

3,970

Level II neonatal intensive care This encompasses intensive and sick care for infants born prematurely. It is dierent from Level I neonatal intensive care, which only includes regular nursery care for preterm infants. Cardiac catheterization This is a process for heart diagnosis in which a long, thin tube called a catheter is guided through a blood vessel to take photos. It is considered less invasive than other methods.

1,192

990

CENTER EXPANSION • $121 million investment • Completion expected in late 2023

For more information on hospital listings, turn to Page 22.

May 2019

May 2020

May 2021

May 2022

May 2023

SOURCES: MAYO CLINIC, TEXAS CHILDREN’S HOSPITALCOMMUNITY IMPACT

SOURCE: TEXAS MEDICAL BOARDCOMMUNITY IMPACT

Local medical professionals said the number of hos- pital beds in the area is a dicult metric to track for several reasons, but the new expansions will certainly help improve the region’s bed-to-population ratio. To that end, the $53.1 million expansion under- way at St. David’s Round Rock will bring two new oors to the hospital, each with room for a 34-bed intermediate patient care unit. The project is slated to deliver in late 2023. “Over the past couple years, we have certainly noticed an increase in demand for health care ser- vices like we have with housing and everything else,” said Jeremy Barclay, the CEO of St. David’s Round Rock. “We added additional ICU beds [in 2021], so we were able to help with that demand, ... and the biggest need we have now is for that middle level of care.” Additionally, the expansion at BS&W in Round Rock is expected to increase the hospital’s capacity for gen- eral and intensive care patients by around 30%. BS&W has a smaller hospital in Pugerville that Vaughan said the network will consider expanding as needs grow. “We don’t have any plans as far as Pugerville goes right now, but we’re constantly evaluating needs and

working with community leaders to try and under- stand what’s needed and where,” Vaughan said. Independent clinics Where hospital access is less robust in places such as Pugerville and Hutto, it is also common for smaller urgent care clinics and free-standing rooms to spring up. The hospital networks as well as organizations such as Austin Regional Clinic along with the Wil- liamson County and Cities Health District operate several such clinics across the region. According to the American Board of Physician Specialties—a national board that certies medi- cal specialists—urgent care clinics can help reduce strain on hospital emergency rooms by providing an alternative for patients who need immediate care. Since August, several of these clinics opened in the area, including Texas MedClinic Urgent Care in Pugerville, Access Health Urgent Care in Hutto and Next Level Urgent Care in Round Rock. The WCCHD is a public medical department that operates in several Williamson County cities, includ- ing Round Rock. WCCHD Medical Director Amanda Norwood said a

central part of the department’s mission is expanding access to health care, both by opening its own clinic and by partnering with other organizations. “We try to work with our community partners to put ourselves in places where our population might naturally visit and where it feels natural,” Norwood said. “It might not be a formal WCCHD clinic, but … we can at least buddy up with some community organizations and make our services available.” As area hospitals work to evaluate regional health care needs and prioritize future expansions, ocials said working with local entities such as WCCHD and Williamson County EMS is a vital part of the process. “The hospitals are great about listening to us,” Knipstein said. “We have these conversations monthly with them, … and they’re doing a very good job of keeping up with the growth and keeping up with the volume that we provide them.”

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ROUND ROCK EDITION • JUNE 2023