Healthcare
As Clay County grows, HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital, Baptist Medical Center and Ascension St. Vincent’s Clay County are growing to meet the healthcare needs of a vibrant and thriving community.
HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital
HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital is a 411 licensed-bed facility and part of Florida’s largest health system. It serves Clay County and northeast Florida with a Level II Trauma Center, a comprehensive stroke program, award-winning cardiovascular services and is the region’s quality leader for inpatient rehabilitation.
“HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital is continuing its development to meet the growing needs and increased complexity of care in the community,” HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital CEO Jeff Taylor said. “ As the only tertiary care facility in Clay County, we are committed to adding services and facilities to meet community growth and improve patient care.”
HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital offers both inpatient and outpatient behavioral health programs, meeting patients where they are on the journey to improved mental health, Taylor said. The hospital also is continuing to grow its certified trauma and stroke programs and increasing its cardiovascular care facilities.
“We are proud to be named in the top 5% in the nation for treatment for stroke by Healthgrades this year and for our continuous recognition from the American Heart Association ‘Get with the Guidelines’ quality achievements,” Taylor said.
The hospital’s CARF-certified inpatient rehabilitation facility is set to expand from 20 to 42 beds in the third quarter of 2024, allowing HCA to serve more patients with its world-class rehabilitation services.
The hospital is also working to increase cardiovascular care capabilities, along with modernizing and expanding imaging assets and services by upgrading its magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine and adding an additional scanner, purchasing two new computed tomography (CT) machines and opening two new fluoroscopy rooms.
“We are a teaching hospital with 154 residents and fellows in our graduate medical education program — training the future of our healthcare workforce,” Taylor said. “Our network of free-standing emergency departments provides access to emergency care close to home for residents in Clay and Duval Counties. We are proud to be recognized as a Top 100 Hospital by Healthgrades in 2024, which allows Clay County residents to receive high-quality care without leaving their community.”
Baptist Medical Center Clay
Baptist Medical Center Clay is the county’s newest full-service hospital.
The 102-bed hospital opened in December 2022 to expand healthcare choices for local residents and to provide convenient access to high-level quality patient care. It is the area’s only locally governed, faith-based, mission-driven, not-for-profit health system.
Baptist Clay features 20 spacious maternity suites with a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit where parents can room with their infant.
Its innovative surgical care includes minimally invasive and robotic-assisted procedures. Baptist Clay also offers a wide range of specialties, including advanced heart care, orthopedics and comprehensive cancer care.
“Clay County’s cancer rate is significantly higher than it is statewide,” Baptist Clay President Ed Hubel said. “Our goal is to help reverse that trend by bringing Baptist MD Anderson to our hospital campus.”
Baptist MD Anderson at Clay offers local residents the same highly advanced cancer care that MD Anderson in Houston is known for, Hubel said. It provides medical oncology, radiation oncology and infusion services right here on Fleming Island.
Baptist Clay has a large network of primary care physicians with six convenient locations across the county.
“We also have Baptist Wellness Center at Fleming Island on our hospital campus, which provides health and wellness services to the community — many at no cost,” Hubel said.
Free services include biometric screenings, wellness coaching, health education for women, healthy cooking demonstrations, various holistic services and talks with physicians and other local health experts. Clients do not need to be Baptist Health patients to receive these services.
Hubel noted, too, that Baptist Clay is affiliated with five other hospitals, including Wolfson Children’s Hospital, one of the country’s top children’s hospitals and many nationally ranked programs.
Baptist Clay was recently voted Clay County’s Best Medical Facility by local residents.
“We’re honored to bring Baptist Health’s high level of care to the residents of Clay County, and we thank the community for putting their trust in us,” Hubel said.
Ascension St. Vincent’s
Clay County
Ascension St. Vincent's Clay County offers customizable birth experiences and leading cardiovascular care with new minimally invasive procedures such as microvascularization, limb salvage programs and a primary stroke center.
“Not only does Ascension St. Vincent's Clay County increase care access to the Clay County community, but we also are a Leapfrog hospital safety grade ‘A’ winner,” said President and CEO Bryan Walrath.
In fact, the 134-bed hospital is consistently ranked one of the best hospitals in America. Fortune and PINC AI named St. Vincent’s as one of the nation’s top 15 health systems, the only hospital system in northeast Florida to earn a spot in the 2024 list. It also received the IBM Watson Top 100 Hospitals Award in both 2019 and 2020 and the Healthgrades Patient Safety Excellence Award in 2019.
“Patients can find peace of mind knowing they are receiving award-winning care in their neighborhood,” Walrath said.
As one of the leading nonprofit and Catholic healthcare organizations, Walrath said Ascension St. Vincent's strives to provide the growing community in Clay County with accessible, high-quality care for those who need it most.
“Clay County’s rural population has access to some of the leading cardiologists who are providing heart care that is desperately needed, close to home,” Walrath said. “Additionally, we provide emergent care in a demographic that has limited options available to patients.”
Ascension St. Vincent’s meets the community where it is most convenient for them, through outreach opportunities such as screening events at local workplaces and schools. At such events, St. Vincent’s healthcare providers often see more than 80 families to discuss access and preventative care.
Additionally, St. Vincent’s has a direct relationship with the Clay County School Board, providing a convenient, no-cost option for care, whether sick, preventive or wellness-focused medical services for all active employees.
Associates at St. Vincent’s take pride in living the mission of caring for everyone, with special attention to those who are struggling the most.
“Demographically speaking, the Clay County area is underserved in regards to access to healthcare. Ascension St. Vincent's Clay is working to bridge the gap,” Walrath said. “We offer in-home care to a certain population of patients who simply have no other care options without the use of transportation, financial support or other factors.”
