CaroMont Regional Medical Center finishes new South Tower

CaroMont Regional Medical Center has finished its South Tower, a multimillion dollar project that took more than two years to complete.

Construction began to expand the 176,811-square-foot tower in 2020, said hospital spokesperson Meghan Berney.

The tower was built on top of an existing surgical unit, adding four stories to the building.

The fourth floor will be an intermediate medical care unit, the hospital said. Unstable patients who require continuous intense observation, continuous oxygen or telemetry monitoring will be housed there.

The fifth floor will be a medical surgical intensive care unit. Unstable patients who need continuous observation, advanced pharmacological therapy, mechanical ventilation or invasive monitoring will be housed there, the hospital said.

The sixth floor will be a cardiovascular intensive care unit. There, patients recovering from cardiothoracic surgery, as well as unstable cardiac patients, will receive care.

Each floor will include 26 beds.

An additional floor will be left vacant for future development.

Patient rooms in the South Tower will be 320 square feet, with extra space for family and spacious bathrooms and large windows.

There are nurses' stations between the rooms, "So there's a direct line of sight from the nurses to the patients," Berney said.

There is also a central space for doctors to work.

"Glass was used to make sure that when they're here, working and documenting, other members of the care team can find them easily. They can be a part of what's happening. They're not separated. They're part of the flow," she said.

The design process of each floor included input from medical staff.

"They tried to make sure that everybody involved in care was also involved in the process of designing. So there's lots of little things that kind of make providing care better, easier, Berney said.

Each floor also has a family lounge and vending areas, which include restrooms and showers, seating, and electrical outlets where people can charge their devices.

"So every floor has a family lounge, where families can sit, and then also a quiet space, which is important," Berney said. "Have you ever been in a waiting room? And it's like, sitting in a pinball machine? So there is a quiet space, and then consultation rooms specifically for family members."

The South Tower was part of a $350 million expansion in and around Gaston County.

CaroMont is in the process of constructing a 66-bed, five-floor hospital in Belmont. That hospital will include 16 emergency department rooms, a labor and delivery unit, a surgical suite with two operating rooms, an OB/GYN suite, an endoscopy and bronchoscopy suite, imaging and diagnostic services, five family areas, a chapel, a cafeteria, and a 240,000-square-foot parking deck, the hospital said.

There also will be a medical office building on that campus with four floors. It will offer general and specialty surgery services, heart and vascular services, and women's health services.

Additionally, new primary and urgent care offices have opened in Cramerton, Cherryville, Belmont and Dallas, and another facility is nearing completion near Moore's Chapel Road, with a practice opening in Lake Wylie this summer. That location will offer the services of CaroMont Family Medicine, CaroMont Women's Health, and CaroMont Pediatric Partners.