SMH Breaks Ground on $75 Million Research Facility

SARASOTA, Fla. (June 27, 2023) – Sarasota Memorial Health Care System broke ground today on a new, $75 million Research and Education Institute.

Designed to promote collaboration, discovery and innovation in medical education and research, the 5-story, roughly 80,000 square-foot facility will house Sarasota Memorial’s expanding clinical research division, clinical and graduate medical education programs, medical library and a new, state-of-the-art simulation center designed for hands-on training.

“Bringing together skilled physicians, clinical investigators and nurse educators, the new Research and Education Institute will centralize everything we do under one roof, providing our physicians, clinical staff, residents and fellows enhanced opportunities to work collaboratively in an innovative clinical education environment,” Sarasota Memorial Health Care System President & CEO David Verinder, who recognized members of the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board, physician researchers and clinical educators, the Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation and community members supporting medical education and research during a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday.

Sarasota Memorial serves as a training ground for the next generation of caregivers and is ranked by Fortune/Merative among the top 40 teaching hospitals in the nation. With Florida State University as its academic partner, Sarasota Memorial provides residency and fellowship training programs that help attract and retain physicians to our community. SMH also collaborates with nursing education programs throughout the region. Close to half of the residents have stayed on at Sarasota Memorial after completing their training, while nearly 70% remained in Florida.

Sarasota Memorial Chief Medical Officer James Fiorica, MD, said the health system’s clinical research and education programs have tripled in size in recent years, with nearly 70 resident physicians and fellows completing residency and fellowship training each year, and more than 50 active research studies under way.

“We are so proud of the strides Sarasota Memorial has made in clinical research and education in recent years,” said Sarasota Memorial Health Care System Chief Medical Officer James Fiorica, MD. “Our teaching hospital is ranked among the best in Florida, and top 40 in the nation. That recognition helps attract exceptional physicians to the region and provide highly specialized care in our community.”

Currently, SMH's education and training programs are located inside the Sarasota hospital. Consolidating those programs into the adjacent facility will enhance interdisciplinary opportunities, while creating more clinical space in the Sarasota hospital for bedside care. Slated to open in 2025, the research facility is being built at the intersection of Arlington Street and Laurent Place, the site of the former Doctors Gardens medical office building. The 1950s-era building was demolished last year to make room for the new facility and a parking garage for about 300 vehicles.

Photo of shovel line participants:
Celebrating the groundbreaking, from left: Stacey Corley, President, Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation; Kirk Voelker, Medical Director of Clinical Research, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System; Britt Riner, Sarasota County Public Hospital Board Member; Tamela Fonseca, Director of Research, Sarasota Memorial Research Institute; James Fiorica, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System; Lisa Baumgardner, Associate Chief Nursing Officer, Sarasota Memorial Hospital-Sarasota; Greg Carter, Sarasota County Public Hospital Board Member; Sharon Wetzler DePeters, Sarasota County Public Hospital Board Member; Wilhelmine Wiese-Rometsch, Chief Academic Officer, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System; David Verinder, CEO, Sarasota Memorial Health Care System

About Sarasota Memorial

Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is a regional referral center offering Southwest Florida’s greatest breadth and depth of care, with more than 1 million patient visits each year across its 2 hospital campuses, a freestanding ER, skilled nursing and rehabilitation center and network of outpatient and urgent care centers. Its flagship 901-bed Sarasota hospital has been consistently recognized as one of the nation’s best, with superior patient outcomes and comprehensive network of outpatient services. In November 2021, the public health system opened a second acute-care hospital, SMH-Venice, to serve the growing south Sarasota County region and the Brian D. Jellison Cancer Institute to expand cancer care in the community. For more information, visit smh.com.