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Building Progress at The Johns Hopkins Hospital

Posted: August 17, 2009

If you’ve traveled to Baltimore over the past two years, you’ve noticed that The Johns Hopkins Hospital is expanding. To best meet the needs of our patients and their families, we’re building an all-new $994 million hospital complex, of which $267 million was raised from private support. This is one of the largest construction projects of any hospital in the country. 

As part of a 10-year master plan and on track to open in 2011, the new Johns Hopkins Hospital was designed—from its state-of-the-art technology to colors and signage—with our community, patients, and visitors in mind.And one detail says a lot about our approach in the new hospital: Every patient will have a private room.

To create the new Johns Hopkins Hospital we’re incorporating the best ideas in modern health care. Among the nation’s largest academic medical centers, this 1.6 million-square-foot hospital features two connected 12-story towers: one for cardiovascular and critical care and the other to house a children’s hospital.

Where are we now?

As of summer 2009, construction on our $994 million hospital is well past the halfway mark. A helipad crowns the cardiovascular and critical care tower. A novel air intake system tops the children’s tower. Both structures are adorned by a distinctive glass-and-brick skin, and interior spaces are rapidly taking shape.

About the towers' scale

In devising our new complex, we’ve given great thought to our region’s growing health care needs. In short, the future will be bigger.

  • The Hospital’s new main entrance will be larger than a football field. The entryway will use one continuous canopy, the way airports do, to protect people from bad weather.
  • All entrances to the hospital, including the adult and pediatric emergency rooms, will stem from this entry court.
  • All told, the new complex will include 560 patient beds—355 for adults and 205 for children.
  • When finished, the new complex will harness 1,370 miles in copper wiring, enough to stretch from Baltimore to Miami.
Naming the towers

The children’s tower will be called The Charlotte R. Bloomberg Children’s Center. The name honors the mother of New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and one of its most generous donors. Mayor Bloomberg credits his mother with instilling in him a strong work ethic and the need to give back.

The adult facility will be called The Sheikh Zayed Tower. It is named to honor the memory of the late ruler of the United Arab Emirates, who formed the UAE in 1971 and ruled until his death in 2004. A major bequest was provided by the UAE in 2008 to recognize Johns Hopkins Medicine’s contributions to the health of the UAE’s royal family.

Key health care features

When it comes to emerging patient needs, we’ve done the math. The new complex will include the following:

  • 224 adult acute care rooms
  • 96 adult intensive care rooms
  • 35 obstetrics rooms 
  • 120 pediatric acute care rooms
  • 85 pediatric intensive care rooms
  • Pediatric trauma service—Level 1
  • Pediatric burn services
  • Indoor play area
  • Modernized emergency departments
  • Modernized diagnostic imaging and radiology facilities
  • 33 operating rooms, including 14 for neurosurgery/general surgery, 10 for pediatric, 6 for cardiac, and 3 for obstetrics
Construction details

What does it take to build a 1.6-million-square-foot medical facility?

  • Up to 1,500 construction on-site workers
  • 12,500 tons of structural steel
  • 44,500 cubic yards of new concrete
  • 1,703,364 linear feet (322 miles) of conduit—a round trip between Baltimore and Ocean City
  • Over 4,000 plumbing fixtures
  • 3.5 million pounds of sheet metal ductwork for HVAC systems
  • 244,000 square feet of glass window walls and exterior windows, including 1,423 curtain wall panels weighing up to 1,800 pounds each
A word about parking

The towers are just the biggest of our many new changes. For the latest on how to navigate our new landscape, visit www.hopkinsmedicine.org/roadahead/.