Capital Health Regional Medical Center
Heart & Vascular Center
principal
ARCHITECTURAL TEAM
William Hall
Alicia Fernandez
Levitta Lawrence
Interior Design
structural engineering
MEP/FP Engineering
GENERAL CONTRACTOR
PROJECT OVERVIEW
For decades, St. Francis Medical Center served as Mercer County’s sole provider of comprehensive cardiovascular care. Following its acquisition by Capital Health, St. Francis ceased operating as an acute care hospital, and critical inpatient services, including cardiac surgery, were relocated to Capital Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton, New Jersey. This transition revealed an urgent need for the health system to redefine its cardiac program to ensure continued access to lifesaving care for residents within the region.
In response, Capital Health Regional Medical Center expanded its cardiac services through the addition of a 12,650-square-foot Heart & Vascular Center, building on its established strengths in high-tier trauma, advanced stroke and neuroscience care. By providing these complex, high-acuity services within the same facility, patients can receive comprehensive care from diagnosis through intervention and recovery.
The project integrates three specialized procedural environments: an open-heart operating room, a catheterization laboratory for minimally invasive interventions and a hybrid operating room supporting procedures that combine open-heart and endovascular techniques. This flexible care model enables clinical teams to tailor treatment strategies to individual patients, supporting procedural efficiency, reduced recovery times and improved patient outcomes. Six pre- and post-operative bays, including two dedicated to cardiac surgery, accommodate a range of patient acuity levels.
The Heart & Vascular Center occupies a former Labor & Delivery unit that was vacated when those services were relocated to another hospital within the Capital Health system. Existing conditions posed significant design challenges, as misaligned floor levels resulting from earlier renovations required the construction of internal ramps within the unit. Furthermore, a structural analysis identified deficiencies within the building, necessitating the installation of steel beams above and below the suite not only to support ceiling-mounted surgical booms and advanced medical equipment, but also to reinforce the structure of the building as a whole.
By integrating cardiac surgery into its service line, Capital Health Regional Medical Center can now offer a spectrum of advanced cardiovascular care within a single facility. The Heart & Vascular Center restores access to critical services, addresses longstanding regional disparities in care, and strengthens the coordination of complex care pathways, exemplifying Capital Health’s commitment to innovation, equity and patient-centered, community-based healthcare.
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