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GREEN BAY, Wis. — HSHS St. Vincent Children’s Hospital is pleased to share a first look at its future Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Newly released architectural renderings of the $17.2 million renovation project unveil all new patient rooms, a family lounge, new entryway, and calming spaces inspired by a Wisconsin meadow theme.
Construction is scheduled to begin in fall 2026 and be completed by fall 2027, using a multi-phased approach to ensure NICU care continues uninterrupted throughout renovation.
The HSHS St. Vincent Children’s Hospital NICU provides immediate care for infants born too early or with other unanticipated difficulties after delivery. Key components of the renovation include all-new private and semi-private patient rooms, a family lounge, a state-of-the-art milk room for feeding support, and several design and architectural upgrades.
“We’re designing this space very intentionally to meet the needs of the most critically ill newborns and their families,” says Amy Bardon, Director of Nursing, HSHS St. Vincent Children’s Hospital. “This new unit will provide families a more modern, comforting environment where they can stay close to their baby, fully supported by a team with more than 600 combined years of specialized neonatal care.”
The new NICU at HSHS St. Vincent Children’s Hospital is being designed from the inside out by those who know NICU care best. Before drawing plans, project leaders built a full-scale, replica NICU patient room and invited frontline physicians, nurses and clinicians to provide recommendations and ensure an elevated and unique quality of care and experience for patients and their families in the new NICU.
Additionally, HSHS has been intentional with design choices for the new space. Since 2019, HSHS St. Vincent Children’s Hospital has based the designs of its patient spaces on Wisconsin landscapes, from the Northwoods-themed pediatric emergency center to Lakeshore-inspired pediatric and pediatric intensive care units. The new NICU layout continues this tradition, drawing inspiration from Wisconsin’s meadow landscapes and sunrises.
“During one of the most vulnerable times in their lives, we want patients and their families to feel a sense of peace. The soothing meadow scenes and colors of Wisconsin sunrises throughout the unit will help us create that calming environment,” said Bardon.
The HSHS St. Vincent Children’s Hospital NICU renovation is one of four major growth initiatives HSHS has announced in the Northeast Wisconsin market since 2025 to increase healthcare access, quality and experience. Additional developments include:
- At HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital Medical Center, work is underway to build a new, six-story bed tower with more than 100 new patient rooms, increasing access to intermediate and intensive care on Green Bay’s west side. Groundbreaking on the new tower will occur this fall, and the entire project is set to be completed in 2028. To learn more, visit: www.stmarysgb.org/future
- In July 2026, HSHS opened Hospital Sisters Health System Rehabilitation Hospital, a joint venture with Lifepoint Rehabilitation, at 140 S. Taylor St. in Green Bay. To learn more, visit: www.hshsrehabhospital.com
- At HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital in Sheboygan, work is underway on a $5.5 million renovation of the Women and Infants Center. The project is set to be complete in spring 2027. To learn more, visit: https://www.hshs.org/st-nicholas/services/pregnancy-and-birth/women-and-infants-center
“Our investment in the new NICU is part of a much larger promise to the communities we serve,” said Bob Erickson, President and CEO, HSHS Wisconsin Market. “Across all our hospitals, we aren’t just building and renovating physical spaces. We are investing in the future of our communities and our patients, actively ensuring they will have access to exceptional, compassionate care right here where they need it, for generations to come.”
To learn more about the HSHS St. Vincent Children’s Hospital NICU renovation project, please visit: www.stvincentchildrenshospital.org/newNICU
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About Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS)
Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS) is a nonprofit Catholic healthcare ministry founded in 1875. Dedicated to our Mission to reveal and embody Christ’s healing love for all people through high-quality Franciscan health care, HSHS clinicians provide exceptional care centered on the whole person. Based in Springfield, Illinois, HSHS employs nearly 11,000 colleagues who provide care in 13 acute-care, children’s and critical access hospitals and home health and hospice programs in Central and Southern Illinois and Eastern Wisconsin. HSHS is aligned with more than 1,000 primary and specialty physicians and advanced practitioners through its owned affiliates HSHS Medical Group and Prairie Cardiovascular and its partnership with Prevea Health. For more information about HSHS, visit hshs.org.
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