By Matt Wiley
North Tampa Behavioral Health (NTBH) is slated to open its doors on S.R. 56 in early October about one year after the opening of Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel (FHWC). However, instead of a facility devoted to physical wellness, NTBH will focus on the well-being of the mind for its patients. There will be an added benefit of increased prosperity for the local community, eventually creating more than 200 jobs.
This summer NTBH bought the facility (located just east of Mansfield Blvd. on the south side of S.R. 56 in the Wiregrass Ranch Development of Regional Impact, or DRI) from United Medical Corp. NTBH was impressively constructed, in form and function, by DeAngelis Diamond Healthcare Group, LLC, to withstand Category 5 storms. DeAngelis is a Naples-based, nationally reputed construction company that specializes in building medical facilities.
NTBH will be both the newest and one of the most secure psychiatric hospitals in the Tampa Bay area when it opens in early October, says NTBH chief executive officer Jim Harris, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has worked in the mental health field since 1990. Surrounded by 14-foot-tall fences, the 53,000-sq.-ft., 75-bed facility sits on 16.46 acres of land on an outparcel of the Wiregrass Ranch DRI, but is surrounded almost entirely by conservation land. Construction began last November. The center is centrally located to serve several hospitals without psychiatric units, including FHWC, Florida Hospital Zephyrhills and Bayfront Dade City (Pasco Regional).