ORANGE PARK – HCA Florida Orange Park Hospital had two reasons to celebrate on Wednesday, Oct. 16 – the grand opening of an expanded Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility and the return of Chad Patrick as the hospital’s Chief Executive Officer.

Patrick was involved in the original plans to develop a 20-bed inpatient rehabilitation center in 2016. He left in 2019 to become the CEO of Mission Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina. He returned to Orange Park one day before the expansion project to 42 beds was completed.

“If you’re sick, this is where you want to be,” he said.

The new facility is designed to provide enhanced recovery and a continuum of care for patients seeking post-acute services.

“It's a lot more than just the sticks and bricks, so to speak, that you see here,” said Director of Rehabilitation Services Jane Maynard. “We're proud and love the new facility. We've been able to expand to 42 beds to treat this community better.

“We do treat a very, very, very sick patient population, which is important. But on top of that, the outcomes that we provide in terms of how good those patients do once they're here from UDS – uniform data source – we are in the top 10% nationally in terms of our outcomes. We outperform every other inpatient rehab program here. So overall, we do an incredible job of providing outcomes and services to those patients. Our outcomes are good. We have a sickest patient population, but our length of stay is one of the shortest for that sick population.”

U.S. Rep. Aaron Bean, whose district includes Clay County, was part of the festivities.

“(People in Clay County) discovered they could rehab locally with the same TLC that Orange Park hospital gives them all the time,” Bean said. “Why go to the big city? Why go to Timbuktu when I can do it right here with the caring family, the award-winning family? The award-winning care that Orange Park is known for.”

With a focus on personalized care, the inpatient rehabilitation team works closely with each patient to develop tailored treatment plans that promote recovery and enhance quality of life. As a Commission on Accreditation Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) with Stroke Specialty facility, patients receive a range of rehabilitative services, including physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology and audiology services, to help them improve functionality and independence.