DeSoto Memorial Hospital is Now TGH DeSoto
OCTOBER 2, 2026 – Tampa General Hospital (TGH) today welcomes patients in Florida’s Heartland to TGH DeSoto, formerly DeSoto Memorial Hospital. As Florida’s premier academic health system, TGH continues to expand its reach across the state, bringing greater access to exceptional care and specialized services to rural communities.
“Tampa General is making a long-term commitment to provide exceptional care in rural communities across Florida,” said John Couris, president and CEO of Tampa General | Florida Health Sciences Center. “Working together with the DeSoto County Hospital District, we’re maintaining the local access to care that is so important to this community, while connecting this region to the innovations, technologies, research and best-in-class care we offer across Tampa General’s academic health system.”
The DeSoto County Hospital District board selected Tampa General to take on ownership of DeSoto Memorial and assume management of the facility, operations, providers and team members. Tampa General committed to the Hospital District board and community to implement new innovations and technologies, expand services and bring additional specialists to meet the needs of the region while working closely with local physicians.
“This is the start of a new era in DeSoto County, one that comes with a new name for our hospital, a significant investment in the care we offer this region and a connection to one of the nation’s leading academic health systems,” said Vince Sica, senior vice president at Tampa General and hospital president at TGH DeSoto who served as the CEO of DeSoto Memorial Hospital. “But some things will never change: our commitment to care for the people of this community.”
Tampa General will also provide access to a highly specialized fleet of advanced medical aircraft, enabling comprehensive air ambulance and interfacility transport so patients in the DeSoto community can reach the right level of care when it matters most.
“In joining the Tampa General family, we will honor DeSoto Memorial’s history and what the Hospital District board, team members, physicians and community partners worked so hard for over the years: ensuring this community had great healthcare,” said Stacey Brandt, executive vice president, chief administrative officer and president, community and specialty hospital division at Tampa General Hospital. “TGH will add to that foundation by bringing in needed services, offering the latest technologies and innovations, and providing access to leading-edge research and treatments.”
TGH DeSoto is a 49-bed hospital in Arcadia. As the only hospital in DeSoto County, TGH DeSoto provides care for a wide range of urgent and life-threatening conditions. It also offers inpatient care, surgical, diagnostic imaging, rehabilitation, behavioral health and other medical services for residents in the region. Existing DeSoto Memorial team members will become part of Tampa General’s academic health system, including employed physicians and clinicians.
With the addition of TGH DeSoto, Tampa General’s academic health system now encompasses eight hospitals, including two specialty hospitals for inpatient rehabilitation and behavioral health, nearly 170 care locations and more than 15,000 team members and providers. The system provides the highest level of complex care to treat the most severe illnesses and conditions for patients across Florida. The system is recognized as one of the nation’s best hospitals, according to U.S. News & World Report, with seven specialties ranking among the best programs in the United States. TGH is committed to clinical excellence, patient safety, innovation, research, education, and patient satisfaction.
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ABOUT TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL
Tampa General Hospital, Florida’s premier academic health system, is a 1,530-bed not-for-profit network of hospital and outpatient services spanning Florida. As the only center for Level I trauma and a comprehensive burn care center serving 23 counties, Tampa General delivers world-class care. The system’s hospitals include Tampa General Hospital, Tampa General Rehabilitation Hospital, Tampa General Behavioral Health Hospital, all in Tampa; Tampa General Brooksville, Tampa General Spring Hill and Tampa General Crystal River. Tampa General is the highest-ranked hospital in Tampa Bay in U.S. News & World Report’s 2026-2027 Best Hospitals for 11 consecutive years, with five medical specialties ranking among the top 50, two additional medical specialties ranked among the top 100 best hospital programs and two specialties ranked in the top 10% in the United States. As the first hospital in Florida to open a clinical command center for real-time situational awareness, the academic health system has elevated its digital care coordination center to the next level by leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and its analytics platform across inpatient and outpatient care to ensure patients receive leading-edge care as quickly and safely as possible. Tampa General’s commitment to growing and developing its team members is recognized by four prestigious Forbes magazine rankings — in the 2026 America’s Best Large Employers ranked as the Tampa Bay region’s #1 employer in the healthcare category for the sixth year in a row, the 2026 America’s Best Employers for Company Culture, in the top 100 for the 2026 America’s Best Employers for New Grads and the 2026 America’s Best Employers for Women.
Tampa General is the area’s safety-net hospital, caring for anyone regardless of ability to pay; in fiscal year 2024, Tampa General provided a net community benefit of approximately $289.1 million in the form of healthcare for underinsured patients, community education and financial support to community health organizations in Tampa Bay. It is recognized as one of the leading adult solid organ transplant centers in the nation and is the primary teaching hospital for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. With five medical helicopters, Tampa General transports critically injured or ill patients from surrounding counties to receive the advanced care their conditions require. Tampa General has a nationally accredited comprehensive stroke center and its 32-bed Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit is the largest on the West Coast of Florida. It is home to the Muma Children’s Hospital at TGH, the Jennifer Leigh Muma 82-bed neonatal intensive care unit and a nationally accredited rehabilitation center. Tampa General’s footprint includes TGH North, which consists of three hospitals and several outpatient locations in Citrus and Hernando counties; Tampa General Medical Group Primary Care offices; TGH Family Care Center Kennedy; TGH outpatient centers; TGH Virtual Health; and TGH Imaging outpatient radiology centers throughout Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas and Palm Beach counties. Tampa Bay area residents receive world-class care from the TGH Urgent Care, powered by the Fast Track network of clinics. To see a medical care professional live anytime, anywhere on a smartphone, tablet or computer, visit Virtual Health | Tampa General Hospital (tgh.org). For more information, go to www.tgh.org.
