As caretakers of the next generation, we are committed to providing world-class care and the best experience possible for our families in Central Florida and across the state. Elevating our care and services for Florida’s 4.4 million children would not be possible without the immense expertise, hard work and commitment of our clinicians and associates. Caring for children is our differentiator as it’s all we do, and I am so excited for what’s to come because I know we are just getting started.
Orlando, Fla. (October 24, 2025) – Becoming a teenager is a rite of passage for many that represents entry into a new stage of life, full of growth, exploration and continued development. The same can be said for Nemours Children’s Hospital, Florida as this week marked 13 years since its doors opened in Orlando. To commemorate the hospital’s 13th birthday, leaders from Nemours Children’s, associates and patient families took part in a weeklong slate of events and activities at the hospital to celebrate its achievements in patient care and community support in Central Florida over the years.
“As caretakers of the next generation, we are committed to providing world-class care and the best experience possible for our families in Central Florida and across the state.” said Martha McGill, BSN, MBA, MHA, President of the Central Florida Region for Nemours Children’s Health. “Elevating our care and services for Florida’s 4.4 million children would not be possible without the immense expertise, hard work and commitment of our clinicians and associates. Caring for children is our differentiator as it’s all we do, and I am so excited for what’s to come because I know we are just getting started.”
The 135-bed Nemours Children’s Hospital, Florida is one of only four specialty licensed children’s hospitals in the state. These hospitals solely provide and invest in care for children and treat some of Florida’s most complex pediatric clinical cases.
Since opening its doors in 2012, the hospital has continued to expand services and programs, increase access for patients and elevate care quality for children and families in Florida. This expertise is reflected by national rankings achieved in U.S. News & World Report, including orthopedics, diabetes & endocrinology, pulmonology & lung surgery, and behavioral health. In other specialties, the hospital’s growing neurosciences program provides the most advanced procedures for children with conditions such as epilepsy, and through its budding international medicine program, the hospital draws an increasing number of pediatric patients from abroad for specialty care services including limb correction, gene therapy and cardiology, among others.
“When we started our cardiac program here in Orlando, we were empowered by a vision and aspiration that we could change the lives of children in so many ways,” said Peter D. Wearden, MD, Director of the Nemours Cardiac Center, Florida, and Chair of Cardiovascular Services, Florida, for Nemours Children’s Health. “Now, we are delivering transformative cardiac care to some of the most vulnerable and complex pediatric patients not only from here in Central Florida, but from around the world. That success is really a reflection of our organization’s commitment to providing the best care possible for children and our outcomes are indicative of that support.”
Academically, Nemours Children’s longstanding partnership with the University of Central Florida (UCF) has led to the establishment of the UCF College of Medicine - Nemours Children’s Health Department of Pediatrics, through which every UCF medical student receives their pediatric training at the hospital. In addition, Nemours Children’s continues to contribute to the advancement of medical sciences, conducting groundbreaking research that includes using the Zika virus to potentially cure neuroblastoma tumors in cancer patients.
As part of its continued growth, Nemours Children’s plans a $300 million expansion to increase inpatient capacity on its campus that will double the size of its emergency department and add additional space for the hospital’s imaging department, which comprises one of the largest and busiest pediatric radiology teams in the nation. The project will also add a new surgery center, which will be the home of the hospital’s world-renowned International Limb Correction Center and the state of Florida’s first and only accredited Gait and Motion Analysis Lab. With the pediatric population in the region projected to grow by almost five percent over the next five years, the expansion will equip Nemours Children’s to better meet the future care and capacity needs of the region.
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About Nemours Children's Health
Nemours Children’s Health is one of the nation’s largest multistate pediatric health systems, which includes two free-standing children's hospitals and a network of more than 70 primary and specialty care practices. Nemours Children's seeks to transform the health of children by adopting a holistic health model that utilizes innovative, safe, and high-quality care, while also addressing children’s needs well beyond medicine. In producing the highly acclaimed, award-winning pediatric medicine podcast Well Beyond Medicine, Nemours underscores that commitment by featuring the people, programs and partnerships addressing whole child health. Nemours Children's also powers the world’s most-visited website for information on the health of children and teens, Nemours KidsHealth.org.
The Nemours Foundation, established through the legacy and philanthropy of Alfred I. duPont, provides pediatric clinical care, research, education, advocacy, and prevention programs to the children, families and communities it serves. For more information, visit Nemours.org.
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