The expansion project involves three facets, the main segment of which is the six-story patient tower designed by the architectural firm of Cannon Design. It will consist of 111 beds and will sit behind an existing parking structure. The project will also introduce an obstetrics unit, as well as a 15,000-sf expansion of the seven-year-old emergency department that will account for $13 million of the development cost.

BWMC is one of several hospitals in Southern Maryland hospitals that are planning or in the process of multimillion-dollar expansions to accommodate the growing demand for healthcare. Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville is in the midst of a $99-million expansion and renovation; Anne Arundel Medical Center has begun a $210-million expansion; and the University of Maryland Medical System has plans in the works for a $400-million expansion at its campus in Baltimore. BWMC is scheduled to complete its expansion project in 2008.