Wills Eye Hospital Opens Bed-Free Facility

Wills Eye Hospital, the nation's only free-standing eye hospital, opened its new bed-free, 125,000-sf outpatient hospital on July 1. The new $47-million medical center, located on top of the Walnut Towers in Center City, will offer advanced ophthalmology care and ambulatory surgery. The hospital will also house physician offices and research and education programs including a 200-seat auditorium. Wills Hospital is leasing 20 beds at its former 260,000-sf location across the street, now owned by Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, for patients that require admission. The new hospital, which features eight operating rooms, will house a high-tech research center on one floor containing conference rooms, labs, and technology for database management and genetic research. Other floors will house the Foerderer Eye Movement Center for Children, pediatric ophthalmology, neuro-ophthalmology, glaucoma treatment, and oncology. Included are units dedicated to primary eye care, retina and cornea procedures, and contact lens services.