Jason Madsen wants Lakewood Ranch residents to stop leaving the area for medical care.
The new CEO of Lakewood Ranch Medical Center, who started July 1, told the East County Observer in his first month on the job that he wants the hospital handling nearly all of the community's health care needs in-house, without patients traveling elsewhere for treatment.
"In a place like Lakewood Ranch, our plan is to provide 80% to 90% of what a community needs," Madsen said. "We essentially want to provide the greatest access to care as dictated by the needs of the community."
The 47-year-old arrives with a $120 million investment already in the ground. The hospital's new five-story, 170,000-square-foot tower had its ribbon-cutting March 24 and became fully operational in April. It adds 60 beds immediately, bringing the campus to 180, with shell space on the fourth and fifth floors for another 60 beds when demand warrants them. All rooms are single-patient with ICU-level technology, and the hospital hired about 40 new employees to staff the expansion.
He starts with momentum.
Madsen came from Texoma Medical Center in Texas, where he served as interim CEO and COO of the 414-bed facility. He joined parent company Universal Health Services in 2017 and said he tracked Lakewood Ranch Medical Center's progress for nine years before taking the top job. Health care is his second career: he spent a decade doing financials for a family construction business in St. George, Utah, then became an EMT as a side pursuit before joining UHS.
He's moving to Lakewood Ranch with his wife, MaChel, and two stepchildren.
Technology investments
Beyond the tower, Madsen outlined several equipment additions underway. The hospital has two da Vinci Xi robotic surgical systems, each costing roughly $2 million, with a third arriving in 2026. It first acquired a da Vinci system in 2019 as part of a $28.5 million expansion.
The hospital is also adding $1 million in surgical technology to its urology department, investing in its Women's and Children's Center with a neonatal ICU and bringing in Mako robotics for orthopedic surgeons.
Madsen acknowledged the hospital won't try to do everything. Burn cases will continue going to Florida Blake of Bradenton, and open heart surgery stays at Manatee Memorial, another UHS property in Bradenton. But he said Lakewood Ranch Medical Center may eventually add open heart surgery as the community grows.
Competition heating up
The push comes as multiple health systems race to serve Lakewood Ranch's population of roughly 80,000, with another 10,000 homes in the pipeline. BayCare is building a $563 million, 154-bed hospital in Palmetto expected to open in 2028. Orlando Health is constructing a medical complex on 32 acres off SR 70 at Crossland Trail. Sarasota Memorial opened an ER at 7250 University Parkway.
BayCare is also seeking a rezone for a 12,800-square-foot free-standing emergency department near SR 64 and Lena Road, as we reported July 29. The Manatee County Planning Commission hearing on that proposal is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 13, at 9 a.m. at the county administrative center in Bradenton.
Madsen noted the hospital holds a four-star quality rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, placing it among 953 hospitals nationally at that level. Only 385 U.S. hospitals earn five stars; the remaining 1,865 rate three stars or lower.
Neighborhoods interested in scheduling a talk or Q&A with hospital leadership can email [email protected], according to hospital marketing director Megan Batty.
