A Decade of Care: WakeMed North Hospital Marks 10 Years of Patient Care, Big Expansions Underway

RALEIGH, N.C. (May 14, 2025) – WakeMed North Hospital is celebrating 10 years! The hospital first opened its doors for patient care on May 11, 2015, bringing quality, convenience and much needed emergency, outpatient services, and physician specialties.

While initially a women’s hospital, WakeMed North is now a 77-bed, full-service hospital offering a wide range of medical and surgical services to ensure comprehensive care for our patients.

Prior to opening as a full-service acute care hospital, the WakeMed North facility served many iterations over the last 20-plus years – from originally opening as WakeMed North Heathplex in 2002, to being the site of North Carolina’s first standalone emergency department in 2005, to the building of the Physicians Office Pavilion, and the eventual addition of inpatient hospital care in 2015.

Over the last decade, WakeMed North Hospital has delivered 12,600 babies; provided care for nearly 450,000 Emergency Department patient visits, performed more than 37,000 surgeries, and recorded more than 321,000 outpatient visits.

Here are a few more highlights from the past 10 years:

The first baby was delivered at WakeMed North Hospital just days after the facility opened; within two months, 100 deliveries had occurred. Last year alone, North Hospital delivered over 1,700 babies. And we are on target to deliver more than 2,000 babies in 2025!

North Hospital has the second highest patient volume of WakeMed’s adult emergency departments systemwide, treating more than 160 patients each day.

In July 2024, a nine-bed, state-of-the-art Intensive Care Unit opened — the only ICU in northern Wake County — bringing an even higher level of care to patients.

In December 2022, North Hospital was honored by The Leapfrog Group with a 2022 Top Teaching Hospital Award, which is one of the most competitive awards U.S. hospitals and Ambulatory Surgery Centers can receive for patient safety and quality.

The WakeMed North Raleigh Surgery Center opened in 2024 as the newest addition to our surgical services offerings. Located in the Physicians Office Pavilion, the facility features one operating room and three procedure rooms. The Surgery Center has expanded our ability to meet growing surgical demands.

Over the years, WakeMed North has added specialty care coverage for many areas and introduced numerous advanced diagnostic and treatment protocols. These services allow patients to receive high-quality care closer to home, while reducing the need for transfers to WakeMed Raleigh Campus.

“We are proud to provide the residents of northern Wake and beyond the very best care close to home,” said Valerie Barlow, senior vice president and administrator for WakeMed North Hospital. “We’ve been able to offer innovative programs and services, advanced procedures, expanded capacity for surgery and inpatient care, and much more. Our future is bright – and busy.”

Many new projects are in progress for WakeMed North Hospital in 2025 as we continue to grow and expand services and capabilities to better meet the needs of our northern Wake County communities. Construction is underway on a 12,000-square-foot addition at North Hospital that will house a new imaging suite. The space will provide enclosed MRI studies among other services.

About WakeMed

Serving the community since 1961, WakeMed is a not-for-profit health care system founded and based in Raleigh, N.C. WakeMed exists to improve the health and well-being of our community by providing outstanding and compassionate care to all. WakeMed’s 1,003-bed system comprises a network of facilities throughout the Triangle area, including three full-service hospitals, eight emergency departments, a dedicated Children’s Hospital and Rehabilitation Hospital, two exceptional Trauma Centers—a Level I Trauma Center in Raleigh and a Level III Trauma Center in Cary, and more than 165 physician and physical therapy practice offices. WakeMed’s mission-driven team includes nearly 12,000 employees, 1,200 volunteers and 1,300 affiliated physicians, along with the more than 800 physicians and advanced practice providers with WakeMed Physician Practices—all representing the best minds and the biggest hearts and the finest quality in health care and community health. For more information, visit www.wakemed.org or follow WakeMed on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.