Kapiolani amasses $34.9M to rebuild, expand hospital

Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children announced Friday that it has raised $34.9 million to rebuild the state’s only full-service children’s specialty hospital, exceeding its $30 million goal for a campaign that ended six months ahead of schedule.

The campaign, led by Dee Jay Mailer and Bert Koba­ya­shi, will fund the first phase of a multi­year master plan to entirely rebuild the hospital with 207 beds and 66 bassinets.

"The expansion and rebuild of Kapiolani is critical for the future of Hawaii," said Mailer, the campaign co-chairwoman.

"Individuals, businesses and foundations from communities across the state and beyond joined together in this campaign to help ensure that keiki and their families will continue receiving high-quality care in state-of-the-art facilities right here at home and will not have to go to the mainland."

Martha Smith, CEO of Kapiolani Medical Center, said, "As a not-for-profit hospital, we rely on philanthropic support to help us carry out our vital mission. Our generous donors have demonstrated that with the help of our community, Kapiolani can make even greater advancements to improve health-care access and quality of life for all of Hawaii’s keiki and their families."

Construction on the first phase of renovations of the hospital’s new neonatal and pediatric intensive care unit building broke ground in February; it is scheduled to open in March 2016.

The hospital demolished its old parking garage to make way for the expansion.