USC plans $350M hospital for Columbia’s BullStreet District, first of its kind in state
The University of South Carolina’s ambitious health district in downtown Columbia will soon include its own standalone hospital.
The specialized, $350 million facility, the first of its kind in the state, would concentrate on treating brain diseases and the nervous system. It would offer advanced neurological and neurosurgery treatments, and neurological rehabilitation for conditions like trauma, stroke and cancer. It could open as early as 2028.
USC is coordinating plans for the hospital with the state Department of Health and Human Services, and will receive $10 million in funding for preliminary architecture and engineering work. The university will also request $150 million from the state legislature to help fund the project.
The hospital will have about 115 beds that provide care for patients. It will also come complete with clinical research spaces, laboratories and provide additional clinical training sites for USC students studying medicine, physical and speech therapy, nursing, pharmacy and more.
“As USC expands its efforts to provide the highest quality medical education to South Carolina students and serve the state’s health care needs, building a single location for neurological treatment and rehabilitation is a vital next step,” President Michael D. Amiridis said in a news release. “This is a tremendous opportunity to address a critical gap in health care for brain-related conditions, not only for our state, but for the entire Southeast.”
It will fill a badly-needed gap in South Carolina health care, university spokesman Jeff Stensland said. Neurological care is limited, and many travel to seek care in Georgia or North Carolina. The new hospital would provide more localized treatment and reduce patient costs.
Stroke is the sixth-highest cause of death in South Carolina, according to the state Department of Public Health, and the state has the fourth highest rate of traumatic brain injury deaths.
“This would be the most impactful project in the history of the university, particularly for the quality of life of South Carolinians,” USC Board of Trustees Chairman Thad Westbook said in a news release. “Our citizens would be able to get the best quality of care in their backyard. This is all part of our mission in serving the people of South Carolina.”
The hospital will be part of USC’s sprawling, 16-acre health campus near the heart of the city, right next to the new School of Medicine, and would be an extension of the university’s network of brain health care and research. Officials have said that the university expects to break ground on the 308,000-square-foot, $300 million medical school there in 2025. It’s expected to be completed in 2027.
The university will maintain its ongoing partnership with Prisma Health including the statewide Brain Health Network it runs in conjunction with the Greenville-based hospital system. It’s unclear how much Prisma, which has several hospitals locally, will be involved with the new health campus in Columbia.
