UNC Health, Duke Health Partner for Future Children’s Health Campus, 500-Bed Hospital

The Triangle’s preeminent healthcare systems announced a major partnership on Tuesday to help advance a $2 billion health campus and stand-alone children’s hospital for North Carolina.

UNC Health and the Duke University Health System are teaming up to establish NC Children’s, a comprehensive children’s health campus aiming to provide a “higher volume of specialized pediatric care” and help families in North Carolina remain local when seeking complex health care for their kids. The project will be a private, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization, according to the filings made to North Carolina by the pair of healthcare systems, and expands the vision for the children’s hospital first announced by UNC Health in September 2023.

A site in the Triangle for NC Children’s is not yet confirmed, according to Tuesday’s announcement, but the plan is to have a 100-acre campus of facilities dedicated to pediatric health and anchored by a roughly 500-bed children’s hospital. Beyond treatment, the campus will provide a “robust research and education enterprise” for UNC and Duke University, as the colleges’ respective medical schools would use it as a pediatric teaching hospital.

“This is an unprecedented partnership between UNC Health and Duke Health, aimed at elevating the care that’s available for all children in North Carolina,” said Dr. Wesley Burks, the CEO of UNC Health and dean of the UNC School of Medicine, in a release. “I’m delighted to work with our colleagues at Duke to create something that will make all North Carolinians proud and change lives for generations to come.”

“Children are the heart of our future, and families across North Carolina deserve access to the most comprehensive, highest quality care for their children,” added Dr. Craig Albanese, CEO of Duke University Health System. “This is a tremendous and unique opportunity to work together to reimagine how we deliver life-changing care to our region’s most vulnerable and we are grateful for the support of our state’s legislature.”

The partnering of UNC Health and Duke Health’s children’s clinical programs and research efforts signals the opportunity for NC Children’s to become a top destination for those in the pediatric health field. The hospital and campus will aim to develop a practice model for providers from both Duke and UNC, which the healthcare systems say will allow them to retaining existing academic appointments, while still having an open medical staff for other qualified providers. Staffing for the hospital, emergency department and other available clinics could be roughly 3,000 people, according to the North Carolina Tribune.

Dr. Mary E. Klotman, the chief academic officer of Duke Health and dean of Duke’s School of Medicine, detailed this in her own remarks shared at an announcement ceremony held in Raleigh Tuesday afternoon.

“By combining the resources, expertise, and innovative approaches of our two organizations, we’ll be able to tackle the most pressing health challenges,” she said, “and develop new treatments and therapies that will benefit children not only in North Carolina, but in the world. The collaboration will create a rich learning environment for our medical students, other health profession students, residents and fellows, [who] will have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience and mentorship from leading experts in the field in an environment specifically designed for caring for children — preparing those trainees to become the next generation of pediatric healthcare leaders. I’m excited about the incredible advances and improved outcomes this partnership will bring to the children and families of North Carolina.”

While the $2 billion price tag for the campus is steep, the North Carolina legislature has already committed $320 million to the effort. The state is the most populous in the nation that does not have a freestanding children’s hospital and the closest to North Carolina are in Atlanta and Washington D.C., as both Gov. Josh Stein and North Carolina Senate Majority Leader Phil Berger each pointed out in their remarks at Tuesday’s launch event. Stein said he believes this project will not only address that gap and improve medical access, but will be a “massive engine of economic growth” for the state.

“Doctors and scientists will be able to secure substantial research dollars to develop new cures, procedures, and devices to help more children,” said the governor. “During construction, thousands of jobs will be created — but over the long term, once it is in operation, we will see biotech, medical device and medical research companies grow, and service industries like hotels and restaurants emerge, to serve the families. This hospital will generate billions of dollars of economic activity in North Carolina.”

“With the leadership of the Duke and UNC teams and the support of the legislature, this dream is becoming a reality,” said Berger. “I’m want to challenge you — especially our business and philanthropic leaders — to stand behind, promote, and advance this project to completion. The legislature has already made it a priority and will continue to do so. I’m proud of the team on the stage today, I’m excited to see the partnership, and I’m excited to see North Carolina’s [new] children’s hospital come to fruition.”

Tuesday’s release said after a site is finalized, the goal is to break ground together on the campus by 2027 and have the anchor hospital opened by the early 2030s. Other services could open sooner, like a children’s behavior health hospital or medical office building, and construction of the entire campus is expected to take roughly six years.

Once completed, all pediatric-related clinical services, programs and operations at both UNC Health and Duke University Health System will transfer to NC Children’s. A spokesperson for UNC Health confirmed to Chapelboro that no plans have yet been made for the North Carolina Children’s Hospital building at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill. Both the North Carolina Children’s Hospital in Chapel Hill and Duke Children’s Hospital and Health Center in Durham consistently rank among the best in the state and country, as they tied for No. 2 in the state and earned nine national rankings in children’s specialties this fall by the U.S. News & World Report.

Photo via Duke University Health System.

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.