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Dear UVA Health Team,

As part of our ongoing commitment to expand access and capacity at the University Medical Center — a core pillar of our institutional strategic plan — we are writing to share an important update on space planning decisions that will shape how we deliver care over the coming years.

These decisions reflect the first phase of a longer, multi-year plan that will sequence investments to ensure we are delivering the right care in the right setting for our highest-acuity, most complex patients — consolidating and integrating shared resources to improve operational performance, and designing clinical environments aligned with the future of care delivery.

Following an extensive Integrated Space Planning process that included more than 20 small group meetings, as well as a careful review of capacity trends and forecasting data, we have reached preliminary decisions regarding bed allocations that align with the build out of floors 6-8 of our South Tower. As we move forward, UVA Health operational and clinical leadership will continue to monitor capacity trends and evolve as needed, optimizing space utilization and throughput in alignment with best practice benchmarks and continuing to meet the need for other high-acuity and complex services.

By expanding and relocating inpatient behavioral beds to our Transitional Care Hospital (TCH), we are able to realize a net gain of +44 additional inpatient beds by the end of the two- to three-year transitional period.

Bed Moves at a Glance: 

In addition to the bed moves outlined above, we are investing in expanded capacity over the next two years across several patient populations and surgical spaces. This includes:

• Expanding overnight capacity in the Cardiac Transition Unit (CTU) by approximately four beds.
• Planning for up to eight additional CDU beds, to be prioritized for Heart and Vascular once built out.
• Revisiting fourth floor bed allocation with an emphasis on private rooms and LVAD/heart failure population.
• Opening two additional Operating Rooms at Orthopedic Center Ivy Road to alleviate main OR constraints (June 2027).
• Expanding surgical access at UVA Health Surgical Care Riverside (July 2027).

We are grateful for the thoughtful engagement of so many clinical and operational teams throughout this process. Your input has been essential in shaping decisions that serve the broadest range of our most unique and highly complex patients and specialties across our health system.

We will continue to share updates as planning progresses and look forward to further engaging faculty and leaders as we move forward. In the meantime, please reach out to your unit or departmental leadership with any questions.

Thank you for your continued dedication to our patients and to each other.

Kathy Baker, PhD, RN, NE-BC, FAAN 
Interim Chief Executive Officer and Chief Nursing Officer 
UVA Health University Medical Center 

John Bennett, MPA
Chief Service Line and Ambulatory Operations Officer
UVA Health

Paul Helgerson, MD
Interim Chief Medical Officer
UVA Health University Medical Center 

Jason C. Lineen, MBA
Interim Chief, UVA Health Children’s and Women’s Services
Chief Strategy Officer, UVA Health