Breaking Ground on the Future of Orthopedic and Surgical Care

Construction begins on a new orthopedic hospital in Sioux Falls

To the tune of 205,000 square feet, Sanford Health is growing its ability to provide the best in orthopedic care. A $160 million orthopedic and surgical services expansion broke ground in June with an anticipated opening date set for the fall of 2025.

“Our patients are going to be impacted by the advances in technology and technique,” said Joshua Crabtree, MD, president of Sanford Clinic in Sioux Falls. “We’re committed to taking care of people here.”

The new hospital will include 161,000 square feet of new space and 44,000 square feet of remodeled space for housing technology solutions that advance therapy, treatment, surgery and recovery. All of this will live to the south of the Sanford Children’s Hospital and to the west of the surgical tower on the main Sanford Health campus in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

At nine stories, it will be the tallest building on campus.

“This investment elevates an already high-quality, high-performing service into a program that more strongly aligns with advances in technology and expectations of both physicians and patients,” said Paul Hanson, president of Sanford Health Sioux Falls.

More room, more helping patients

Designed collaboratively by physicians, staff, administrators and patients, the hospital will have 12 new operating rooms, 35 additional prep and recovery rooms, and 56 medical suites. Because outpatient surgeries continue to increase, the medical suites will be designed to give patients and their families a comfortable place to stay before or after a procedure, with the assurance that supportive care is just around the corner.

“The addition of these medical suites is a testament to how far we’ve advanced recovery, drastically decreasing the length of stay for total joint procedures from four overnights to same-day discharges in many cases,” said Mike Wilde, MD, vice president and medical officer for the Sioux Falls region. 

With shorter recovery times, in just weeks many patients today are taking steps to get back into the activities they love.

“Maybe that’s playing outside with the grandkids, getting back on a bike or working on that golf swing,” said Dr. Wilde. “While we can’t guarantee their golf game will improve, we can help them ease back into their stride.”

Hanson emphasizes that the field of orthopedics and sports medicine care today is all about “getting people back to life as it should be.”

Meanwhile, more operating rooms will allow for more patients and providers too.

“We can expand our services and recruitment efforts into communities that maybe we don’t have a strong presence in today, but we will tomorrow,” he said.

Enhancing care by advancing technology

When the orthopedic hospital opens, it will transform how both current and future physicians deliver care – from how they treat conditions to how they further research and education.

"We’re in the fifth year of our orthopedics residency program, and this building is going to make that program even more competitive,” said Kristofer Kimber, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at Sanford Health. Technology additions to the hospital will include cutting-edge surgical spaces and an intraoperative MRI machine, which will provide near real-time imaging during procedures.

“Enhanced care doesn’t come without enhanced technology,” said Kimber.

Investing in rural health care

The hospital’s groundbreaking creates an exciting new chapter for Sanford Health Sioux Falls, which has been caring for patients in the community for almost 130 years.

“A foundation has been built throughout the years by visionary Sanford staff, physicians and community leaders that empowered us to create an organization to meet the needs of those we serve where they are now and in the future,” Hanson explains.

Patients were at the heart of the decision to build the hospital – to provide more people with the highest quality of care and latest treatments.

“The Sanford Orthopedic Hospital is going to change the game – for those we serve and for those we work alongside,” Hanson said. “We wholeheartedly welcome that responsibility.”

Expanding orthopedic and surgical services in Sioux Falls will also enhance access for patients across the region.

“We want to make sure that we are providing top-notch health care no matter what your zip code is,” said Dr. Crabtree. “I think when we put a building like this in place and we make a commitment like this, it solidifies our intention to be the premier rural health care provider in the country.”

To learn more, visit sanfordhealth.org.