The Methodist Le Bonheur Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit (CVICU) Expansion project is approximately 128,000sf in scale and includes a 31-bed pediatric inpatient expansion with an elevated courtyard space, a PACU and NICU expansion, a newly renovated Cath/MRI shared-case space and a relocated Blood Bank that supports the full facility. Two enabling projects, an Imaging and ICU renovation, were completed in advance of this project, which helped set the larger expansion up for success and maintain Le Bonheur’s high care standards for their existing patients.

The Methodist Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital is located in downtown Memphis, Tennessee and has been in operation since 1952. Le Bonheur cares for approximately 14,000 pediatrics patients every year and also serves as a teaching hospital, partnered with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.

The Mississippi River flows through downtown Memphis, an iconic feature of this historic city’s landscape. The new expansion drew inspiration from this life source, its shorelines and the natural foliage of this region. The museum like quality of the existing hospital provided a strong foundation to build upon. New spaces simultaneously provide a palette for local art and installations while energizing patients, family and staff through the application of evolved finish and material palette. A careful balance was maintained between active spaces and areas more focused on respite and reflection.

The new expansion replaces a 10-bed CVICU unit and increases the existing NICU bed count by 14, with the capacity to accommodate an additional 16-NICU beds. The addition of a hybrid Cath/MRI suite makes it one of a small group of facilities in the country able to perform these cross-disciplinary procedures.