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New Women’s & Children’s Hospital
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Say Hello… to Our New Women’s & Children’s Hospital

It’s time to say hello.

To history in the making.

To the birth of a new generation.

It’s time to say hello to our region’s first Women’s & Children’s Hospital.

With the most advanced maternal and pediatric care delivered in warm and welcoming spaces.

Designed for the incredible women, babies and kids who are shaping the future of South Texas.

This is a hospital like no other.

Women’s & Children’s Hospital

The new Women’s & Children’s Hospital, located on the University Health Main Campus on 4502 Medical Drive, San Antonio is a place where women, children and their families are surrounded by all of the experts and technologies to provide the highest level of compassionate care in a brand-new, state-of-the-art facility.

The new hospital provides much-needed facilities to meet the needs of our growing community and region, and it is the first hospital in South Texas exclusively focused on the unique needs of women and children.

The new home for our Level IV NICU and Level IV Maternal Center, the hospital features:

  • spacious labor and delivery suites
  • large postpartum rooms
  • customized nutrition for newborns
  • advanced maternal and neonatal care in warm and welcoming spaces

Another unique aspect of the new hospital is our SaludArte Healing Arts Program. We know that exposure to art, nature, color and light is good for patients and staff and has been scientifically shown to reduce anxiety and pain levels. This evidence-based approach to the built-environment is integrated throughout the new hospital, featuring works by local, regional and national artists in public areas, procedural spaces, as well as every patient room.

While the SaludArte program was launched in 2010, the new hospital provides a perfect backdrop to promote healing through design enhancements, public art and procured art, as well as performance spaces, music therapy and our “art at the bedside” program.

Take an online tour of our new Women's & Children's Hospital.

Mom with newborn
Welcoming Moms and Babies

If you are pregnant, we encourage you to choose the Women’s & Children’s Hospital for your delivery. Our brand new, spacious labor and delivery suites were designed to accommodate you and your baby, along with a partner. Several of the suites are furnished with labor tubs for pain management.

From your first prenatal visit in a University Health clinic through your journey to delivery, our team of experts support you through every step, with all of your visits, test results and medications documented in our comprehensive electronic medical records system called Epic. Patients can then see all of this information, and manage appointments online 24/7 through the MyChart website or smartphone app.

We encourage you to connect with your newborn right after birth. You’ll receive support if you and your partner want to participate in:

  • Delayed cord clamping to increase hemoglobin levels and iron in your baby’s blood
  • Skin-to-skin contact to calm and warm your baby through cuddling
  • “Golden Hour” uninterrupted bonding for the first hour of your baby’s life
  • Breastfeeding support to help with positioning and latching on
  • Delayed bathing to give your baby his or her first bath eight hours after birth

Our John L. Santikos Mother’s Place provides precision nutrition to support your breastfeeding journey, and ensure your baby’s nutrition is customized for optimal growth and development.

As an academic medical center, in partnership with UT Health San Antonio, University Hospital is South Texas’ first Level IV maternal center for high-risk births.

Baby drinking milk bottle
Highest Level of Care For Babies

The Women’s & Children’s Hospital is the new home for our Level IV neonatal ICU (NICU)— the highest level of care available for premature and very sick newborns. To achieve this designation, our NICU undergoes rigorous site visits by experts to verify our capabilities in caring for infants requiring the most advanced medical care.

If your baby is born early or with a complex medical problem, you can depend on our NICU team to provide the very highest level of care. In fact, other health care facilities routinely transfer their high-risk maternal and complex neonatal patients to University Health because we have the broad expertise and specialized teams in the hospital every day, around the clock.

Our new, state-of-the-art NICU suites provide spacious private rooms for families to bond with their babies. Parents can stay overnight in the same room as their baby. These beautiful rooms include televisions and full private bathrooms, with plenty of room for bonding, which promotes growth in these tiny patients. An in-room camera allows parents who are not able to stay with their NICU baby to check in 24/7.

We also offer ongoing care for your baby after leaving the NICU. Learn about our different programs to help ensure your baby continues to grow and thrive.

Postpartum Care and Support

The hours after giving birth are important as it is a time for resting, bonding with your newborn, and getting breastfeeding and other support. After you give birth, you’ll move to a spacious postpartum room for bedside care and rooming in with your baby. Rooming in means you’ll bond with your baby and get a good start at breastfeeding while you stay together in the same room. Count on skilled, compassionate nurses to support you through this process.

University Hospital earned the Baby-Friendly designation by meeting strict criteria that dictate best practices in caring for a newborn. This includes bonding and skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby.

Our board-certified lactation consultants and specialized obstetric nurses provide breastfeeding support during your stay and after you return home after your hospital postpartum care.

If you have a high-risk pregnancy, you can also count on us for the most advanced approaches to protect the health of you and your infant.

Take a Virtual Tour of Our State-Of-The-Art Labor & Delivery Suites
Our spacious labor and delivery suites were designed to accommodate you and your baby, along with a partner.
Women’s Services

Woman looking at cameraIn addition to comprehensive maternity services, we offer numerous women’s services, including a 24/7 women’s center for OB/GYN emergencies, which is being relocated to the new hospital. It is the only center of its type in San Antonio, and our OB/GYN team is available around-the-clock to provide superior care if you have a medical emergency during your pregnancy.

A dedicated hospital transport team also is available 24/7, if needed, to bring patients to the Women’s & Children’s Hospital quickly and safely, by ground or air, to access our broad expertise and specialized services.

Through our University Health hospitals and clinic locations, you can access complete women’s services for every stage of your life.

Pediatrics

The Women’s & Children’s Hospital is the new home to our advanced Children’s Emergency Room that is open 24/7 with minimal wait times. When you need us, we’re here for you and your child. Whether you’re dealing with a middle-of-the-night fever, sudden injury, or need treatment for a chronic medical condition, we provide expert pediatric medical attention.

We offer complete care to your child with fast access to certified pediatric emergency physicians and a wide range of pediatric specialists from UT Health San Antonio. Every infant, child and adolescent who comes through our door receives individualized treatment plans in a welcoming and safe environment.

For those seeking urgent care or telemedicine, our walk-in PediExpress is the only walk-in clinic in San Antonio area with a board-certified pediatrician available all of the time. It is located on the Robert B. Green campus near downtown San Antonio. We also have walk-in care for adults and children at Medical Center Pavilion and Luckey Ranch, if those locations are more convenient.

The Women’s & Children’s Hospital is also the new home for our inpatient pediatric specialty services, which was built with children in mind, and features oversized kid-friendly patient rooms and a Child Life Center.

The Hope Hits Harder Cancer Foundation Child Life Center was designed to help hospitalized children make some happy hospital memories with performances, arts and crafts, pet therapy, gaming, educational areas and a medical playroom. The Child Life Center helps children cope with their medical challenges through art, play and education.

Pediatric patients in our Congenital Heart Center have access to dedicated professionals, including nurses, respiratory therapists and other specialists. On this unit, we provide extensive pediatric heart resources for young patients from all over South Texas in 15 rooms, each equipped with a sleeper sofa, so loved ones can stay overnight to support their child.

National Recognition

University Health is the only San Antonio hospital to be named to Newsweek’s national ranking of Best Maternity Hospitals for 2022-2023. U.S. News & World Report named us a 2022-2024 High Performing Maternity Care Hospital. Leapfrog/Money also lists University Health as one of the nation’s Best Hospitals for Maternity Care. These designations ensure that you and your baby will get some of the best maternity and prenatal care in the country.

University Hospital is recognized as a Baby-Friendly facility. The designation recognizes the hospital’s continued commitment to the babies, mothers and families of Bexar County. To achieve this, University Hospital continues to meet strict criteria that dictate best practices in caring for a newborn, including bonding and skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby.

Our transport service earned the Pediatric Critical Care Transport Team Apex Recognition Award in 2021.

Maternity awards and designations

AT A GLANCE

The Women’s & Children’s Hospital was funded with no tax rate increase. It is the first hospital in South Texas dedicated to the unique needs of women, newborns and kids, and includes:

  • 14-story, 300-bed hospital
  • 900-space parking garage
  • Dining and Conference Center
  • SaludArte: Art of Healing Program
  • Dedicated children’s emergency department
  • Dedicated around-the-clock care for OB/GYN emergencies

This is another example of University Health’s commitment to meeting the needs of our growing community to ensure access for all to the high-quality, affordable care close to home.