Baptist Emergency and Imaging Center at Nassau Crossing Opens its Doors

The first of two buildings that comprise the Baptist Nassau Crossing Medical Campus opened Nov. 7. Called the Baptist Emergency and Imaging Center at Nassau Crossing, the facility houses a freestanding, 24-hour emergency department and an imaging center. A second building, a medical office housing primary care, specialty care, behavioral health and an endoscopy center, will open in December.

The launch of the medical campus marks a significant expansion for Baptist Health in fast-growing central and western Nassau County, says Catherine Graham, senior vice president of clinical service lines and ambulatory business development. The campus is located just east of I-95 on State Road 200.

“The campus was built there because of the growth,” Graham says. “Historically, people in Callahan and Hilliard had to travel for everything. We are going to grow exponentially.”

While there is no hospital on the campus, patients needing a higher level of care can be transported by on-site ambulance or helicopter. Baptist Nassau Crossing Medical Campus is located about 13 miles west of Baptist Medical Center Nassau in Fernandina Beach.

“We believe the right investment on that campus is on the ambulatory care side,” Graham says. “We’re going to need acute care. A good percentage of care — about 80% of care — can be done in an ambulatory care setting.”

The facility features two emergency departments. The Baptist Emergency Center is for adults, while the Wolfson Children’s Emergency Center is designed specifically for patients ages 0 to 17. The addition of a separate pediatric emergency center reflects the fact that more than 5,500 children in Nassau County sought emergency care between October 2021 and September 2022, according to statistics from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration. With the opening of the pediatric ER, families in Nassau County will have easier access to the specialized pediatric care of Wolfson Children’s Hospital, the only full-service children’s hospital in the region and the only state-designated Pediatric Trauma Center in Northeast Florida.

“The philosophy of care for children is different,” says Tara Beth Anderson, president of Baptist Nassau Hospital. “That is what differentiates our pediatric ER. Health care professionals have competency and training specially for children.”

The $38 million building also houses an imaging center for adult and pediatric patients equipped with state-of-the-art technology. The facility offers X-rays, ultrasound, CT scans, mammography and bone density screenings.

 “This provides people with emergency care close to home, in their own community. For treat-and-release patients, that is a huge benefit,” Anderson says. “For patients who require admission, we work with the transport system to look at the Baptist model and get them to the best place.”

Other services on the medical campus include a laboratory, respiratory therapy unit and a full pharmacy. The campus is designed for future expansion as the community’s need for emergency services increases. Baptist has purchased an additional 10 acres of adjacent land.

Next month, a 32,094-square-foot medical office building located behind the emergency center will open. Initially, the medical office building will house Baptist Primary Care and Baptist Behavioral Health, with the potential to add other specialty services. The facility will house the 20,000-square-foot Borland Groover medical office and Nassau Crossing Endoscopy Center. The Borland Groover medical office will have 12 exam rooms and will offer upper endoscopy and colonoscopy as well as infusion services for patients with autoimmune disorders such as Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, plaque psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis.

The facility will make it easier for residents of western Nassau County to receive regular colonoscopies, says Beth L. Stambaugh, senior communications strategist with Baptist Health.

“There are about 63,500 people who live within 15 minutes of the center, and that number is growing,” she says. Caught early, survival rates for colon cancer approach 90%, Anderson says. “We are elevating what we can do with colon cancer screening and survival rates.”

Baptist Nassau Crossing patients who are part of Baptist Health will benefit from the MyChart digital medical records system that makes records available to all Baptist providers, no matter their location.

“When you stay in that Baptist system your information and your care stays integrated,” Graham says. “That connectivity is important to good care.”