MUSC Children’s Health and Roper St. Francis Healthcare launch first-of-its-kind pediatric partnership in South Carolina

The new 16-bed unit at Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital blends community-based convenience with the expertise of an academic children’s hospital to provide seamless, compassionate care close to home.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Oct. 16, 2025) – In a significant expansion to meet the growing health care needs of the Charleston region, MUSC Children’s Health and Roper St. Francis Healthcare are partnering to open a dedicated, 10,000-square-foot Children’s Unit at Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital in West Ashley.

This partnership marks the first collaboration of its kind for pediatric inpatient care in South Carolina – a milestone in the long history of teamwork between MUSC Health and Roper St. Francis Healthcare, institutions that date back to 1824 and 1829, respectively.

Scheduled to open in the new year, the unit will offer a modern sanctuary for high-quality, compassionate pediatric care. It will feature 16 private, child-friendly rooms designed for family-centered healing and a 1,000-square-foot playroom to support recovery and well-being.

With MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Children’s Hospitals 2025 – 2026 survey as the number one children’s hospital in the state with six nationally ranked pediatric specialties and building on Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s reputation for top-quality pregnancy and newborn care, this expansion will extend services beyond birth and advance the system's mission of healing all people with compassion, faith and excellence. With the area's rapid population growth, the project also closely aligns with the Roper St. Francis Healthcare 2030 Strategic Plan, which includes initiatives to optimize the system’s footprint in the region and meet future clinical needs as well as MUSC’s goal to empower healthy communities.

“With the continued growth of our community, we recognize the challenges families face in getting high-quality, accessible care,” Roper St. Francis Healthcare President and CEO Joseph DeLeon said. “We want to answer that call and ensure families have convenient access to exceptional care. We thank MUSC Health for its close partnership in this endeavor.”

“The MUSC Children’s Health and Roper St. Francis Healthcare partnership is a powerful example of what can happen when two mission-driven organizations come together to meet the needs of our community,” said Patrick J. Cawley, M.D., CEO of MUSC Health and executive vice president for Health Affairs, University. “By combining the trusted clinical expertise of MUSC Children’s Health with Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s commitment to community-based care, we’re creating a model that delivers the right care, in the right setting. Families can trust that their children will receive high-quality, compassionate care close to home and backed by the full resources of our academic health system.”

For patients and their loved ones, a key benefit of the unit expansion is the reduction of transfers to other facilities. The new unit will allow MUSC pediatric hospitalists and Roper St. Francis Healthcare to treat low-acuity pediatric conditions in-house, providing continuity of care and preventing parental separation during critical moments.

Roper St. Francis Healthcare pediatric nurses certified in pediatric advanced life support (PALS) and rapid response will work with MUSC pediatric specialists to provide round-the-clock, high-quality care for the unit’s young patients.

Families can feel confident knowing they’ll receive the same high quality care found at MUSC Children’s Health, with MUSC pediatric specialists overseeing care at Roper St. Francis Healthcare.

The unit blends community-based convenience with the collaboration of a comprehensive children’s hospital, reinforcing trust in quality and safety.
A clear operational plan ensures that each patient receives the right care in the right setting.

This initiative represents a true collaboration, with MUSC pediatric hospitalists, RSFH nurses and aligned pharmacy/IT systems working seamlessly together. This alignment of health systems reflects a shared commitment to excellence, accountability and patient-centered care.

The MUSC Children’s Health and Roper St. Francis Healthcare Children’s Unit will feature:

Emergency, medical-surgical (med-surg) and inpatient services.
Laboratory, imaging and pre-op services.
A pediatric clinical pharmacist.
A child-life specialist to help patients and families cope during their stays.

A 1,000-square-foot playroom.

The unit blends community-based convenience with the collaboration of a comprehensive children’s hospital that will treat a range of common diagnoses, such as:

Asthma flare-ups.
Mild pneumonia.
Croup (barking cough).
Bronchiolitis in babies over 3 months.
Jaundice in newborns.
Stomach illnesses with dehydration.
Skin infections.
Fever-related seizures.
Fevers without clear causes.
Kidney or bladder infections.
Mild pancreatitis (inflammation).
Ear, nose and throat surgeries.

“We are honored to extend our nationally-ranked care to children and families through this partnership,” DeLeon added. “Providing inpatient care when they need it most is a shared responsibility that we hold dear.”

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About MUSC Children’s Health

MUSC Children’s Health is changing what’s possible for children and their families by providing the pediatric clinical and research expertise every child deserves. From promoting healthy lifestyles to offering life-saving treatments, MUSC Children’s Health delivers comprehensive and compassionate care to children throughout South Carolina and beyond.

MUSC’s integrated children’s health care system consists of the 250-bed Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital (SJCH) and Pearl Tourville Women’s Pavilion located on the Charleston peninsula, which opened in February 2020; the Charles P. Darby Research Institute where research teams conduct widely-published pediatric studies discoveries that change how care is provided; and the R. Keith Summey Medical Pavilion in North Charleston, which offers an ambulatory care and surgery center, specialty care and after-hours clinics. MUSC Children’s Health also offers an expanded depth and breadth of expertise in multiple locations throughout the state, providing primary, urgent and specialty care in person or via telehealth.

To provide the best care for children of South Carolina now and in the future, Children’s Health puts the needs of patients and their families first. This intentional approach aligns with the emerging national best practice of offering children’s ambulatory and specialty services within local communities and the delivery of more acute care at a major flagship hospital. As a result, families can more easily access the specialized pediatric care they seek. For more information, visit musckids.org.

About Roper St. Francis Healthcare

As a not-for-profit healthcare system, Roper St. Francis Healthcare chooses purpose over profits by putting extra money back into the system to help meet the health needs of the Charleston community. The healthcare system features four flagship hospitals: Roper Hospital, Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital, Roper St. Francis Mount Pleasant Hospital and Roper St. Francis Berkeley Hospital. In an emergency, the healthcare system offers six strategically placed emergency departments. With nearly 7,000 teammates, Roper St. Francis Healthcare is the Lowcountry’s largest private employer with more than 1,000 doctors representing almost every medical specialty, and it has earned status as a Great Place to Work. The system has nearly 700 beds and more than 120 facilities and services across four counties. Learn more: rsfh.com.