The new unit will bring new heart surgeries and procedures closer to home for residents of southern Duval and northern St. Johns counties.
November 5, 2026 – Baptist Health is expanding advanced cardiovascular services at Baptist Medical Center South to offer highly specialized heart surgery and minimally invasive electrophysiology and structural heart procedures closer to home for patients in southern Duval and northern St. Johns counties. Central to the expansion is a new dedicated heart unit designed to support complex cardiac surgeries and procedures. The 21,000-square-foot unit is expected to welcome its first patients in fall 2027.
Construction is underway on the new unit, which is being built within unoccupied space at Baptist South. It will feature four operating rooms – two for cardiovascular, one for structural heart and one for electrophysiology procedures – plus dedicated space for an additional operating room in the future. It will also include seven patient post-op recovery rooms as well as surgical support areas and dedicated spaces for clinical staff.
The expansion builds on the solid foundation of quality, expertise and advanced cardiovascular care established at Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville and anchored by Baptist Heart Hospital located on the Jacksonville campus. Teams at Baptist Jacksonville and Baptist South will work in close partnership as one integrated program, with shared standards, expertise and resources to deliver high-quality, coordinated cardiovascular care to patients throughout the region.
“Throughout our history, Baptist Health has been willing to act when we saw an unmet need in our community,” said Matthew A. Zuino, MSIS, FACHE, president and CEO of Baptist Health. “Bringing additional heart services to Baptist South continues that legacy. As our region grows, we’re investing in the people, expertise and capabilities needed to ensure patients and families have access to specialized cardiovascular care close to home.”
Expanding on excellence
The addition at Baptist South will increase access to advanced heart care and strengthen the hospital’s existing heart services, which include diagnostic and interventional cardiac catheterization as well as peripheral vascular diagnostic and interventional procedures. Baptist South also offers outpatient heart services for general cardiology, preventive care, coronary artery disease management, heart failure management, arrhythmia (AFib) evaluation and cardiovascular diagnostic testing.
“For nearly two decades, Baptist South has grown alongside the communities of southern Duval and northern St. Johns counties, expanding services in response to the needs of the people we serve,” said Kyle W. Dorsey, FACHE, president of Baptist South. “As one of the fastest-growing areas in Northeast Florida, demand for specialty care continues to increase. Adding advanced heart services to our campus is an important step in our ongoing commitment to grow alongside the community and provide more patients and families access to specialized care closer to home.”
A comprehensive heart and vascular network of care
Baptist Health is home to the region’s largest and most comprehensive cardiovascular program. Baptist Heart Hospital – the area’s only freestanding hospital for heart and vascular care – is a top-ranked, high-volume heart center with specialists with extensive expertise across advanced heart surgery, electrophysiology, structural heart procedures, interventional cardiology and vascular care. The program has earned national recognition for quality care and outcomes.
“This expansion is about more than building new facilities and expanding capabilities,” said Nicole B. Thomas, FACHE, president of Baptist Jacksonville. “It’s about extending the expertise, teamwork and clinical excellence that define our cardiovascular program. By operating as one integrated program across Baptist Jacksonville and Baptist South, we can provide more patients access to advanced heart services while maintaining the high standards and specialized expertise our patients, families and community have come to expect from us.”
About Baptist Health
Based in Jacksonville, Florida, Baptist Health is a community-based health system focused on making health care easier to access while working to improve health and well-being. As the area’s only locally governed, faith-based, not-for-profit health system, Baptist Health delivers a full spectrum of preventive and specialty care through its 200+ ambulatory locations, six acute care hospitals, home health and virtual care offerings. Through its comprehensive approach to whole-person health for children and adults, Baptist Health provides the area’s largest network of primary care, urgent care and behavioral health care, as well as many specialty services and several wellness centers. Destination centers of excellence include Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center, Baptist Heart Hospital, Baptist Neurological Institute, and Wolfson Children’s Hospital, the only full-service children’s hospital serving the region. To help people get the care they need when and where they need it, the health system leverages digital technology to enhance the delivery of its high-quality, seamless, patient-centered care. Baptist Health is vital to the community, caring for more patients in Northeast Florida than any other provider. The health system has been consistently ranked as “most preferred” for more than 30 years and has been named one of “America’s Greatest Workplaces in Health Care” by Newsweek magazine. To learn more, visit BaptistJax.com.
