Hendrick Medical Center unveils plans to build new outpatient rehab facility for children

Hendrick Medical Center announced today that it will build a new freestanding pediatric therapy gym to replace the pediatric gym currently housed in the Hendrick Center for Rehabilitation (HCR). With more than 800 outpatient pediatric visits each month for physical, speech and occupational therapies, HCR’s current 1,400 square-foot pediatric gym has become too small to accommodate the increasing demand and growing needs of area patients.

“For years, we have dreamed about the opportunity to have a larger space - one that is better equipped to offer more treatment options in a place designed just for kids,” said Brian Bessent, vice president at Hendrick Medical Center. “Thanks to the generosity of Hendrick’s Children's Miracle Network (CMN) and the Play 4 Rex Foundation, I'm excited to see this dream now becoming a reality.”

Bessent brings a unique personal perspective to this new undertaking. Before assuming administrative roles with the hospital, Bessent worked as a speech-language pathologist for many years in Hendrick’s current pediatric gym.

“Our new outpatient pediatric therapy gym will allow additional space to treat more children with all types of needs - from tiny infants with feeding issues to adolescent patients with sports injuries,” said Bessent. “Children in our community will continue to receive exceptional care from our physical, occupational and speech therapists, but in a more spacious, child-friendly environment.

The 4,180 square-foot pediatric rehabilitation therapy gym will include:

• Private treatment rooms
• Parent observation room
• Check-in/waiting area
• Large open treatment gym
• Rubberized flooring with track
• Climbing structures
• Ball pit
• In-ground trampoline
• Mini zipline
• Daily living/kitchen training space
• Easy access to pediatric playground

The new facility will be built with philanthropic dollars. Funding will be provided by CMN and the Play 4 Rex Foundation. Additional fundraising efforts will complete the campaign.

"When we started the Play 4 Rex Foundation in 2013, our goal was to help as many people as we could for as long as we could,” said Jill Fleming, co-founder, Play 4 Rex Foundation. “Hendrick Center for Rehabilitation’s Pediatric Therapy Gym will do just that. Our foundation started off doing smaller projects, but always knowing we wanted to tackle something larger; something permanent that would leave a lasting legacy to Rex's memory and his spirit. Lance and I believe the opportunity to partner with the Play 4 Rex Foundation and CMN on this project does that."

The new building will be located directly behind Hendrick Center for Rehabilitation, between Hickory Street and Simmons Street. Construction is scheduled to begin August 2018, with an expected opening August 2019.