Cardon Children's opens 7-story tower
By Edward Gately
East Valley Tribune
MESA, Ariz. (Nov. 2, 2009) It’s been quite an eventful past few days for Isaac Bunker.
First, the Mesa High School junior was admitted to Cardon Children’s Medical Center late last week after a cyst was discovered inside his stomach tissue. This lead to abdominal surgery in which a portion of his large intestine was removed along with his appendix.
Then Monday morning, a recovering Bunker was among a parade of young patients, local dignitaries, cheerleaders and sports mascots that commemorated the opening of Cardon Children’s new seven-story patient tower.
Cardon Children’s previously was located inside Banner Desert Medical Center but now has its own tower.
“It was pretty amazing,” Bunker said. “This has a really great view, and we can watch movies and get on the Internet. It’s all good.”
Banner Health’s $356 million project allows the children’s hospital to expand from 145 to 248 beds. It also includes a new, enlarged pediatric emergency room and units for pediatric rehabilitation, radiology, cancer care, intensive care and neonatal intensive care.\
