Heart Hospital Baylor undergoing expansion for 10th anniversary

The hospital’s research department will also be expanded into its own private suite on the fifth floor of the new tower. THHP has roughly 100 ongoing research trials and is also in the process of creating a residency program for training physicians.

The new training area’s auditorium will be open to the community for use as well, Valentine said.

Also included in the expansion are four new operating suites, a new post- anesthesia recovery unit, and new and expanded guest amenities, such as a business center, restaurant and coffee shop.

In the span of 10 years, the Heart Hospital has gone from doing 500-600 heart surgeries a year to about 1,700 surgeries per year, Valentine said, ranking it the fifth largest heart-hospital in the U.S.

The hospital conducts anywhere from nine to 10 open-heart surgeries per day, he said. In May, the hospital was named one of only 12 hospitals in the U.S. to earn the Society of Thoracic Surgeons three-star rating in all three categories: isolated coronary artery bypass grafting, isolated aortic valve replacement and aortic valve replacement plus coronary artery bypass grafting.

The ability to continue and expand the hospital’s research and services will help it continue to be a national destination for both patients and surgeons, Valentine said.

“Our quality is what we focus on every day; it’s very rewarding work,” said Valentine, who has served as the hospital’s president since its opening. “We view this as not two hospitals but one medical campus where we can deliver superior medical care.”