Growing Advanced Specialty Care for Kids in Southwest Missouri

St. Louis Children’s at CoxHealth is an affiliated location of BJC HealthCare.

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About

What This Means For Families

Families across southwest Missouri will soon have access to more pediatric specialty care, right here at home.

St. Louis Children’s at CoxHealth, with the support and expertise from WashU Medicine pediatric physicians, is a collaboration that brings highly specialized pediatric care closer to the communities we serve. By combining the trusted local care families know at CoxHealth with the nationally recognized expertise of St. Louis Children’s Hospital and WashU Medicine, we will reduce the need for long trips and keep more care close to home.

Over the past year, our vision has taken shape in two important ways.

  1. In March 2026, St. Louis Children's at CoxHealth opened the region’s largest independently licensed children’s hospital, located inside the walls of Cox South. 
  2. In 2027, the collaboration will reach another milestone with the opening of the new St. Louis Children's at CoxHealth Specialty Care Center. This state-of-the-art facility, which includes outpatient care and surgery, currently under construction on the Cox South campus.  

Together, these facilities will create a pediatric care destination designed around the unique needs of children and families throughout southwest Missouri.

One collaboration,
two locations

Aerial view of the Cox South hospital complex at sunset, with connected buildings and a parking lot.
Started March 2026

Enhanced Inpatient Pediatric Care

The pediatric hospital at Cox Medical Center South

Earlier this year, St. Louis Children's at CoxHealth opened a dedicated pediatric hospital located inside Cox South. The hospital includes:

  • Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
  • Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU)
  • Inpatient pediatric services

This pediatric hospital is the only independently licensed pediatric hospital in southwest Missouri and allows families to access specialized hospital care closer to home. 

Mother and child walk hand in hand along an autumn park path.
Looking Ahead to 2027

Southwest Missouri's Largest Pediatric Outpatient Center

St. Louis Children’s at CoxHealth Specialty Care Center

The next chapter is already underway.

Construction crews are building the new 133,000-square-foot St. Louis Children's at CoxHealth Specialty Care Center, which will serve as the region's largest dedicated pediatric outpatient facility. 

When it opens in 2027, families will find a wide range of services under one roof, including:

  • WashU Medicine pediatric specialty clinics
  • Pediatric primary care offices
  • Pediatric urgent care
  • Outpatient surgery
  • Infusion services
  • Imaging and lab services
  • Physical and occupational therapy
  • Pharmacy services
  • Family support programs

The center is designed to make care more convenient, allowing families to access multiple services in a single location while reducing the need for travel outside the region. 

Rendering for the St. Louis Children’s at CoxHealth Specialty Care Center
Rendering of St. Louis Children’s at CoxHealth Specialty Care Center

Bringing Specialized Care Closer to Home

For many families across southwest Missouri, accessing pediatric specialty care has often required traveling several hours away from home.

St. Louis Children's at CoxHealth is working to change that. Through the collaboration of CoxHealth, St. Louis Children's Hospital and WashU Medicine, more children will be able to receive advanced pediatric care in Springfield while remaining close to family, school and support networks. 

At its heart, this collaboration is about one goal: ensuring children throughout southwest Missouri have access to exceptional pediatric care without having to leave their community. 

World-class pediatric expertise
Closer to home

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BJC HealthCare

St. Louis Children's at CoxHealth

St. Louis Children’s at CoxHealth is an affiliated location of BJC HealthCare. Information about this location is maintained by BJC HealthCare and is available on their website.

Visit bjc.org